Keep dat head of yours Mr Treasurer

De SVG Football Ah-source-share-shun is unable to account foh Ninety-six thousand, four hundred and eighty-five dollars! By now, de Ministry of Sports, if it is still de Guv-on-in body foh all sporting organ-I-say-shun in SVG, should ah done close down de Football Ah-source-share-shun!{{more}}

Do exactly way dey did at Billing-alone, put de FIU to investigate and set up an interim manage-mint committee to organ-eyes football business! But dat is not likely to happen under dis regime, “Satan can’t correct Sin!” Dey did it once wid Billing Alone, but was “more in dat mortar dan de pistle.” Dey didn’t do anything wid de two wukers wid de money missing at de Argyle Airport! Nothing wid de Officials at Health who ate de KFC and say was foh de Cuban Doctors! Nothing wid de Permanent Secretaries who shopped foh de Ministry of Agriculture making hefty commissions! Nothing wid de lady at Income Tax wid de dozens ah charges! Dey are others, but one gets de impression dat de tuff talking ULP got ah soft spot foh Red collar Corrupt-shun!

Does Football have ah blight? X-X-U-Teef after X-X-U-Teef, cannot resist de tempt-hear-shun to mess wid FIFA grant money. How come dis problem of accountability does not show its ugly face in our Cricket, Netball, Basketball, Athletics or Olympics and Swimming? Maybe ah shouldn’t stress out me-self, because Football Corrupt-shun is not unique to SVG, it rampant in de head, FIFA. Ole people say when fish rotten, it start ah stink from de Head. Jack Warner could write ah book bout corrupt-shun in FIFA, de parent body foh world Football! But why can’t we be role models?

What ah statement by de second Vice President/Treasurer at last Sat-dey’s General Meeting. “Take my Head!” he told de meeting, as he admitted dat he had failed in his duties to manage de Ah-source-share-shun Finances. When come to money matters, should be only two signatures to every cheque, one of which must be de Treasurer, de other could be either de President or Vice-President! Ah not faulting de Treasure foh any dishonesty, ah hear he is decent. My suggestion is dat de he should “Keep his Head” he will need it, instead “Give de Ah-source-share-shun his resignation wid de entire X-X-U-teef!”

Football belongs to de people, de youths in particular, dey deserve ah better deal! Let’s select ah new Executive. MORE AND MORE BOOKS

Ah felt proud last week Monday morning over at the Dr J P Eustace Memorial Secondary School, in Edinboro. Ah member of our Boyhood Gang asked me to do ah miss-shun on his behalf. Gang foh us was no “Bad Boy Thing,” just de youngsters of de day, sticking to-gather, having clean fun. Dis Gang had ah representative from almost every family in de Village. De names Joyette, St Agathe, Mc Lean, Trimmingham, Soleyn, Edward readily come to mind.

We knew every fruit tree in de Village: mango, Guava, Golden Apple etc. Ah still got de taste of ah piece-ah-roast breadfruit and ah pinch ah donkey (yellow’n’ salt) butter in me mouth! Nobody could afford bicycle in dem days, so we made two-wheel scooters, four wheel carts, and roamed de Cassava Mills from Lodge to Fenton foh cassava bitty (pig feed).

All ah we could ah swim, except Mighty Sheller, he fraid sea water till dis day, ah could still hear him saying: “My Mammy say dat Sea-water ain’t got no back door.” We went up Dorsetshire Hill, den ah totally white community, to fly kite. We spin nuff ah Carley Nanton’s locally made tops, we pitch marbles; Play Cricket at Bonadies ground at Buchan. We went Nine Mornings and Serenading. Haffa-foot Duncan, Jerry Rounce and Skirrey taught us Ring Games and Folk Songs: “Gouti under dey, tease um! tease um! dog dey ah doh!” We argued, wrestle, fist fight, and made-up de same time. We never know how deeply we were bonding foh life. Fellars go all over de world and when dey return foh vacation, nothing has changed, is nuff “ole time story.” Dey’s one guy who turned out to be different and dah is David Joyette. He didn’t get ah secondary Education, but went thru de teaching system. Today he holds ah Doctorate in Business. What makes him different is dat in Canada, he devotes ah lot ah his time and money shopping foh books that are suitable foh School Libraries in his home land.

To date he has supplied GHS, BGS, Tommy Saunders, Bishop’s College, his Alma Matter, Kingstown Anglican Primary with between 500 and 700 books to each school. So last week was Dr JP Eustace time, some 500 books. David’s philosophy is dat children should inculcate ah passion foh reading, and every school should have its own library wid ah good stack ah books.

It will be nice if more citizens abroad could do like David in other areas. And wid dat is gone ah gone again!

One Love Bassy!

Bassy Alexander is a land surveyor, folklorist and social commentator.