The sport of table tennis is bigger than any one person

Fri Jan 18, 2013

Editor: I am responding to a letter in one of the weekly newspapers dated 11th January 2013, captioned: “Table Tennis in constitutional Loop”. It is sad and most sickening to read and understand the motive of the writer, knowing the fact that he is living in St Vincent and the Grenadines.{{more}}

St Vincent and the Grenadines is only 133 square miles in area. With a population of just over 100,000, it is virtually impossible for a sporting organisation to hide the work they do or disguise their state of dormancy or whether they have been operating as a clique.

Let us look back. The executive of the recently defunct SVG Table Tennis Association only consists of three elected members; the others were co-opted. MOST OF THE ELECTED MEMBERS HAVE RESIGNED FOR REASONS THAT THE WHOLE COUNTRY IS AWARE OF.

The SVGTTA is accountable firstly to its affiliates, then to its regional and international bodies. The present executive’s term of office ended since May 2011. They have been in office since 2007 and have only held two and a half tournaments for the five plus years in office. They have never held a single general meeting. They have never held a single Junior Tournament. The young players who started playing since that time have grown out of their junior ages (crime). The executive has ignored the cry of the players/members, i.e the staging of a meeting to chart the way forward for the sport. Several government officials intervened, trying to get them adhere to the plea of the ninety per cent plus members and players who were suffering as athletes and administrators, but to no avail. So, why is a case being made for these guys to continue their devastation of our beloved Ping Pong?

The question is: what method can be used other than setting up an interim committee to run the affairs of SVGTTA? Should the members/players just sit back and wait for the next six or God knows how many years for them to call a general meeting? In my humble opinion, the sport is bigger than anyone and we must seek to put the interest of the sport before friendship or dislike.

The issue of setting up an interim Committee is not a constitutional one. It’s the will and the voice of the people/affiliates. If you are a true lover of table tennis and you would want to see the sport get back to the high level it once had, you would be honest with yourself and embrace the positive move that was just made on Saturday, 5th January, 2013.

Table Tennis Player

E James