Christian Stokes | Issues and opportunities – Jamaica’s sport institutions infrastructure

THE QUALITY of Jamaica’s institutions is key to our national development. Nowhere is this case argued more compellingly than in the work of Daron Acemoglu and James Robinson, who were awarded the 2024 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences for their work on how political and economic institutions drive national prosperity or poverty. They argue that inclusive institutions that distribute power broadly and encourage participation drive prosperity, while extractive institutions concentrate power and lead to poverty.

Jamaica has a competitive advantage in athleticism, yet we have not yet grasped how to monetise that, even as we face a huge economic opportunity from the growth in the global sports market. Positioning ourselves to develop sport as a major contributor to national development will require that we address issues related to our sport institutions.

SPORT INSTITUTIONS AND POLITICS

Jamaica’s sport politics has seen several key inflexion points, most notably, the narrow defeat of Ian Forbes by Howard Aries in the 2004 JAAA elections; the loss of the JFF presidency by Captain Burrell to Crenston Boxhill, and the captain’s subsequent return to office; and finally, Mike Fennell stepping aside from the JOA presidency. All three occurrences led to a major shift in the politicisation of each institution aimed at consolidating and prolonging power for incumbents. And, here, we must be careful. Politics in sport, the presentation and debate of ideas, and proposals, claims to efficacy, experience, etc., are essential to informing the decisions of the electorate. That must be held on to and pursued with vigour by incumbent and challenger alike. What we must not have are institutions that use their position to mute opposition. In other words, we need to agree and enforce appropriate rules of engagement

Here are some basic rules that the country should be able to agree on:

1. The body overseeing an election should be independent and without interest or the appearance of interest in the success or failure of candidates.

2. The voting list should be finalised by the body responsible for overseeing the election based on the applicable sections of the sport body’s statutes. Challenges should be heard and arbitrated by this body.

3. The voters’ list and appropriate contact information should be made available to candidates in a timely fashion, subject to data privacy legislation.

4. Persons standing for election should not, de facto, be running the election.

5. The stacking of voters’ lists, in its many and varied forms, should be prohibited in statute and spirit.

6. Proxy votes, where applicable, should not be held by the agents of candidates, but by a member of the sport body.

7. A fixed date election should be required to discourage the tactic of calling elections with the shortest possible notice to keep opponents off balance. This is not good for either the country or its sport organisations.

These may, of course, be discussed and modified, but “If fish a riva battam tell yuh seh alligator hav gum boil, believe him”.

NATIONAL INSTITUTIONS

The role and funding of InSport, the SDC, ISSA, JADCO, SDF and Independence Park Limited should be rationalised and streamlined. In addition, the following institutions would establish for Jamaica the framework to address the emerging challenges and execute on its promise of sporting excellence:

1. National Sports Council: Established in law with the mandate of implementing the National Sport Policy

2. National Sports Tribunal: Established in law with the mandate of hearing and resolving national-level sporting disputes with a focus on resolving disputes related to sport body elections, upholding national standards of governance for sport associations, and arbitrating disputes of national consequence between sporting bodies. This body would also establish codes of conduct and address Safe Sport and sport-related human trafficking issues at a national level.

3. Association of National Sport Governing Bodies: Established to represent the development needs of sporting bodies to the Government via the National Sports Council, and organise alignment with relevant national initiatives.

4. Sport Closed-end Funds: Established on the JSE to fund athletes, clubs and events.

The future is ours, but the country needs to have the will and courage to face it and shape it.

Dr N. Christian Stokes is a development economist and global sport administrator. Send feedback to chris@nchristianstokes.com and columns@gleanerjm.com