BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – THE St. Kitts Amateur Basketball Association (SKABA) will be holding its Annual General Meeting (AGM) tomorrow (Feb. 5), and Dr. Garfield Alexander, who in a past release was said to be a possible candidate for the presidency, has confirmed that he would be running for the position.
In an exclusive interview with SKNVibes, the family doctor and District Medical Officer who served as Vice President in 2007 and 2008 said it was not his initial plan to vie for the presidency but was encouraged by many persons.
“I was called to act by many persons who thought I may be able to bring a newer and younger perspective to the leadership of local basketball. The number of persons that called didn’t faze me but it was the quality of persons,” he said.
“Some of the persons that pledged their support are persons that I know love basketball and wish to see it back to the pinnacle it once was,” Dr. Alexander added.
According to a release from the St. Kitts Sports News, the elections will be on the agenda of the SKABA’s AGM which will be held at the Football House on Lozack Road at 5:00 p.m.
The association’s constitution states that the AGM was due in November 2010, but over the last few years it has been held between the months of January and February.
Apart from other pressing issues, the SKABA elections will be the main focus as it has been the topic of many discussions over the past weeks. The current President, James ‘Barman’ Hanley, has indicated that he would not seek re-election.
Alexander, who coached the Ghetto Roots Basketball Junior team, B-team and Premier Division team and saw the latter winning the Premier Division Championship in 2009 and were semi-finalists in 2010, said he was saddened that Hanley was not seeking re-election.
“I am saddened by the fact that Mr. James ‘Barman’ Hanley has chosen not to run this year. We may have had our differences but he has always been and continues to be a mentor of mine.”
The release also stated that Hanley had a term that was littered with many issues, which included the resignation of at least two executive members in addition to an early season highly publicised face-off of sorts between the SKABA executive and the Ghetto Roots Basketball Club in 2010 over the eligibility of Dale ‘Bobo Dread’ Rochester.
“Despite our very public debate on the Bobo Dread issue, we are still very close. I have a great love and respect for basketball and for what it taught me, not only as a child but as a young man in university. We have an issue with crime and violence among the youths and this can only be corrected with interventions on the social level, and basketball can be used as a tool to not only teach responsibility and team work but to rehabilitate,” he said.
Alexander said there are several changes that could be made to enhance the basketball experience.
“But these changes have to be made firstly with the public in mind. How can we enhance SKABA so that it may enhance the society which we live in? We need to look at how we can enhance the experience for the fans.
“SKABA game nights have to return to being a family event, where the whole family can come out on any given night. With those two parties taken care of we can finally enhance the experience for the sponsors/partners, officials and players alike.”
Programmes that will help develop younger players are one of the areas the presidential hopeful would like to address.
“There must be a focus on grassroots basketball programmes. Scientific studies have shown that after the age of 12 or 13 players do not improve on their skill level; they just gain more experience and gain intelligence in their area of sport. It is with this in mind that basketball, with the aid of the Ministry of Sports and SKABA, must return to the schools.”
He added: “We need a constant influx of talent in the cases where players get injured, receive scholarships or have age to the point where they are not as effective on the court.”
For years, persons, specifically team players, have spoken about the possibility of some of the games being hosted in the rural areas, and Alexander said that is something he would look into.
“Basketball has to be decentralised. It has been grossly unfair for years for the teams and players from the rural areas to travel repeatedly from their homes/areas to participate in SKABA. Now we have a team from Nevis and they have to travel across waters to participate. I think we can have some of the games in Nevis and in the rural areas to offset the price of commuting. Of course, it is important to maintain Basketball City as the Mecca of the league in order to ensure that the players have something to aspire to,” Alexander said.
Alexander also mentioned other areas he would address including the fact that in an audiovisual age SKABA must also be a part of that.
“With video we can stream most if not all of the games, and with still photography at basketball city there will be an improved awareness of the league.”
Finally, Alexander said that more women were needed on the executive.
“In St.Kitts we have too much male egos that interfere with good practice and judgment. When I served as vice president we were fortunate to have two female members…Mrs. Ethel Patrick-Thomas and Miss Vanessa Parris, and I was constantly amazed at their professionalism and their ability to keep us in check.
“They truly made my experience one that was loaded with learning. I pledge to have at least two females on my executive if elected as president of SKABA.”
Other names that emerged as possible candidates to vie for the presidency include former National Coach Leroy Littol Benjamin Jnr. and former Games Commissioner Romel Tobias.
