New NSC manager lays out immediate focus

Creating avenues for a steady income stream and the fostering a closer relationship with stakeholders are the immediate focuses of Jomadean May, the newly installed manager of the National Sports Council.{{more}}

Outlining his objectives, May told SEARCHLIGHT, “My first task and I will start here at Arnos Vale, is to create revenue streams… For instance, there is poor utilisation of space, as there is a lot of space which can be marketed in some way or the other.”

Taking up the post close to a month ago, May revealed that he has already put in place some administrative mechanisms to improve the council’s revenue collection.

May projects walk-ins with business persons to get ideas from them on how they can partner with the National Sports Council towards the promoting the venue.

The new NSC manager holds the view that sports should be injecting revenue into the economy, instead of what obtains, whereby it is a financial burden on central government.

Citing another of his projects, May lamented the relationship between the National Sports Council and the different sporting organizations and stated his intention to bring about improvement.

He is of the view that with a more harmonized relationship, the disputes which arise over the use and sharing of facilities from time to time, would not take place, as each entity will see itself as part of the process.

“There is no way forward unless all the stakeholders in sports come together… we need to interface; We need to come up with ideas together, as any decision made will affect someone in some way… We need to build a relationship with the communities…. This may go as far as how people treat the facilities,” May commented.

He added: “We are disunited… We may not see eye to eye on everything, but there is room for positive conflict… Conflict is where you are going to bring about solutions.”

Bent on leading by example, May said since taking up the post, he has appointed a management team, as he is not one to “micro-manage”.

With a view to alleviating the workload on him and his staff, May proposes to revive the management committees which have been dormant and consolidate those which are still functioning.

May said it is virtually impossible for the staff of the National Sports Council, to oversee the various playing fields and hard courts strewn in the various communities in St Vincent and the Grenadines.

May took over from acting manager Julian Burgin, who was elevated to the post, following the dismissal of Cecil Charles in November last year.

A relatively young manager, May, at age 33, is a holder of a Master’s degree in Sports Management from Bond University in Australia. Before that, he earned a Bachelor’s degree from the International School for Physical Education and Sports in Havana, Cuba from 2003 to 2008.

He spent one year as a tutor at the St Vincent and the Grenadines Community College, where he was in charge of the Physical Education programme, after which he was assigned to the St Clair Dacon Secondary School.

But high on his list of experiences, May identified a stint at the International Olympic Committee youth programme in Athens, Greece, as the fillip for his deep appreciation for the powers of sports as a means for social transformation.(RT)