Latest update March 19th, 2024 12:59 AM
Dec 12, 2018 Sports
By Sean Devers
Kaieteur Sports caught up iconic Cricket Commentator and Sports Organizer Guyanese Joseph “Reds” Perreira during the Caribbean Boxing Championships last weekend in Guyana where he was Manager of team St Lucia.
Don’t be fooled by his physical appearance; now 79, his years are showing, his hair is grey and he walks slowly with pronounced limp, not only because of his age but due to a stroke he suffered while doing commentary in an ODI at Sydney during the 1996 West Indies tour of Australia.
Reds is most happy behind a microphone, his eyes light up, his brain is as sharp as ever and what memory he has.
Reds was a part of Broadcast team doing the live streaming of the CBC Boxing card before doing the Ring announcing for over six hours on the final night.
At his age time is running out and that’s expected but sadly his patience with how sports is viewed by those responsible for its development in Guyana is also running out.
“I prepared a sport tourism proposal for Guyana with lots of workable ideas which I sent to Minister (of Business) Dominic Gaskin who passed it on to (Director General, Department of Tourism,) Donald Sinclair,” disclosed Reds, the Sports Advisor to former Sports Minister Shirley Field-Ridley in the Forbes Burnham Government.
Reds has commentated in 145 Tests and over 300 ODIs and also commentated on the George Foreman v Joe Frazier bout in Jamaica and informed that he was disappointed that there was no follow-up and his proposal did not get a chance to be formally discussed and implemented.
Reds, who did his first Test in 1971 when West Indies opposed India, said while he is disappointed he is still hopeful that some of his ideas could become a reality and he could be a part of its implementation.
“I think a sports tourism unit should be set up which is made up of all the stakeholders and a budget allocated for Sports Tourism,” added the former Sports Director in the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS).
It has been reported that from the $2.65Billion allocated to the Ministry of Business for 2019, the Guyana Tourism Authority and the Department of Tourism will receive $305Million and G$93Million respectively.
Reds revealed that Sinclair responded by saying that his ideas were ‘good’ and ‘workable’ and informed that a sport Tourism conference would be held.
“It was held but I was not invited and the opportunity for me to make a presentation of my proposal was wasted. I believe Guyana can reap a golden bonanza out of international sports tourism,” said Reds.
“I am not attacking anyone but I am not sure where is the stump from my 100th Test in 1984 that I presented to the Director of Sports for the proposed Cricket Museum. The former players I have spoken to said he had not made contact with any of them. I could have gotten US10,000 on Embay for that stump since it was an original stump,” Red lamented.
Reds, who resides in St Lucia, said that Guyana which is much bigger than all the English-speaking Caribbean countries combined but with a small population and has more in mineral, forestry, riverain and other resources, has paid little attention to the wealth it can reap from well-organized sporting tournaments by foreign teams with carefully planned and securely guarded tours of Guyana by foreign players, their families, friends and supporters.
“Barbados, Antigua & Barbuda, St Kitts & Nevis, St. Lucia and Grenada have already shown over many years how such tours, even of school teams can positively impact relationships between countries and increase foreign exchange inflows,” said Reds, whose voice is known in India, Australia, England, Sri Lanka, New Zealand, Pakistan and Africa.
The Essequibian from Pomaroon feels such an initiative will impact all sectors; the Government, Sporting Organizations/Associations, Food, Beverage, Souvenir and Clothing Producers, Tour Organizers and other related areas in the economy.
Foreign teams and other sports visitors taken on tours will find history lessons in the names of many of the places they encounter and will be fascinated by the origins.
Won’t it be fitting to name the Media Centre at the Providence Stadium the ‘Reds Perriera Media Centre’ while he is still alive to know that he was honoured by his own people?
Listen to the man that is throwing Guyanese bright future away
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