Hussain pleased with efforts of fellow Executive of LGC

Dec 23, 2019 Sports

Just before Christmas two years ago, the Lusignan Golf Course was under water – literally, figuratively and financially. Then a new executive team, led by Aleem Hussain was elected in December 2017. Today, the transformation of the Club is nothing short of a miracle because in Guyana where most outdoors sporting activities come to a halt during rainy seasons, the LGC executive has set a record of 710 out of 720 potential playing days during their term in office so far.

The photo shows the improvement that club has made over the years.

The Cub’s president Aleem Hussain has repeatedly stated that without the support of Macorp and several of its newer members such as New Trend Auto’s Rudy Ramalingum and Aditka Persaud, along with sterling performance by the grounds staff led by Mike Guyadin and Avinash Persaud he could not have achieved the promise made to the members.
“We started with an amazing group of volunteer executive members who believed in a shared vision, one that was to include major renovations to ensure better playing conditions, improved recognition of the sport, increased activities at the club and attract new members,” Hussain told Kaieteur Sport. “I am proud to be a part of the team that has accomplished all of those goals in the time we have been in office, a special thanks to the members who joined with me to ensure that the first golf carts were brought to the club.” The Executive Team had a vision of transformation that began with upgrading the drainage and irrigation system to ensure that there would never be a repeat of the circumstances faced during previous years and Macorp’s CEO Guillermo Escarraga was quick to offer his company’s support.
“We have confidence in Aleem and what he wanted to do, and felt that with the right leadership, the goals could be achieved. Macorp has the best equipment for the job and we wanted to make sure that he had the right tools to pull off these great plans,” he posited.
Within a few months of being elected, the new executive was able to transform the course, despite not having available funds due to the financial constraints they inherited. Asked why he personally invested into the development of the grounds, Hussain stated that he believed that the Club would grow and it was not considered a risk but a fulfillment and delivery of a promise he had made to all members that was the driving motive behind his decision. Since the new executive team was put in place, the impact has been visible and the sport of golf has risen to become the one of the most recognizable sporting activities in the country.
The LGC has held more than 40 events in each of the past two years – a dramatic improvement from the usual 17-19 that were held in prior years. Additionally, major activities such as weddings, wine tastings, fashion shows by International Fashion Designer and Author Dr. Sonia Noel, Soca & Wine Festival hosted by HJ Entertainment and many other activities such as dominoes competition, Easter Egg Hunts and barbecues are now eagerly looked forward to by thousands of people – many of whom had never even known that Guyana has a golf course.
Under the leadership of the new President and Executive team, the Club has increased its Corporate Social Responsibility duties by donating to charities, opening its resources to children of all ages, reached out to schools, universities and other organizations to provide equipment and training at no cost, and even created a programme with the Lusignan Prison to aid with providing work/training for soon to be released inmates to aid with their re-integration to society. Support for the game of golf by Minister of Youth, Sports & Culture Dr. George Norton has allowed the LGC to provide recognition of the sport and training for persons who wish to learn. The Minister himself has been a fan of the game and has stated that he was proud of the development, direction and growth he was seeing in the past few years.
Hussain has expressed gratitude to their many sponsors. “We have been fortunate that major companies such as Banks DIH, Ansa Mcal, Citizen’s Bank, DDL, Macorp, Marriott Hotel, Copa Airlines, Ganesh Parts & General Store/Bridgestone, Assuria General Insurance, New Trend Auto, Crown Mining, Continental Paints, CIDI, Massy Group. Kissoons Furniture, Muneshwars Travel, Maurice Solomon & Co., Bulkan Timbers, Panko Steel, Oddesy Transport, Silica Sands, Trophy Stall, Romel Bhagwadin, Global Auto Spares, Munaf Arjune, AR Printery and NexGen Global Marketing amongst many others have been there to support and guide us during the transformation. And a special thank you to the previous Executive Teams that held the LGC together during tough times that allowed us to be in a position to bring the club to a new level.”
When asked about what were the future goals of the Club, the President said he hoped the Club would finish the upgrades to include a restaurant, pool, tennis courts and training center that would include the Macorp sponsored lighted driving range currently under construction. “The Executive team – Captain Chen, Secretary Ravi Persaud, PRO/Asst./Secretary Treasurer Bishop Guy Griffith and Treasurer Shaw has been the force behind the implementation of the plans and without their support, much of what was accomplished would not have been possible so I take my hat off the them for their support.”
The current condition of the Lusignan Golf Course offers hope to many similar organizations and shows that with the right mind set, leadership and a never say die attitude, miracles and possible.