THE reign of Whyclife "Dave" Cameron as president of Cricket West Indies (CWI) has come to an end with challenger and former board member Richard "Ricky" Skerritt defeating the Jamaican in the elections held today at the Pegasus Hotel in Jamaica. Skerritt, a former St Kitts and Nevis cabinet minister, will assume the role of president with his slate winning the voting process by eight votes to four.
His running mate, Dr Kishore Shallow of St Vincent/Grenadines, will displace Dominica's Emmanuel Nathan as vice-president, bringing to an end Cameron's six-year and very controversial tenure. Prior to today's elections, Cameron made it clear his team was confident on yet another win and they didn't need to campaign to secure a fourth term.
Skerritt said, "I am humbled and deeply honoured to be elected as president. We pledge to work for improvement on and off the field for West Indies cricket."
Dr Shallow added, "I am grateful and humbled by the support of the members of the territorial board. This is a victory for West Indies cricket."
It was said that the Windward Islands, Barbados and Guyana boards already pledged their two votes to the Cameron ticket which gifted his regime six of the seven votes required to win the elections. Trinidad and Tobago and the Leeward Islands pledged to the Skerritt slate, while Jamaica was undecided, which meant there were indeed surprise swing votes that helped depose Cameron.
Cameron tweeted, "Just to say thanks for the opportunity to serve West Indies cricket. I remain committed to serve in the region. #TrustTheProcess".
Skerritt's campaign was built on repairing player relations and improving the economic status of the game regionally, which has clearly paid dividends with former players such as Sir Viv Richards, Darren Sammy, Roger Harper, Deryck Murray, Clive Lloyd and Sir Andy Roberts backing his vision.
By RENALDO MATADEEN