Maravi

(HERALD) Coltart must apologise to ZC

Coltart must apologise to ZC

WHEN controversial Australian journalist Peter Roebuck decided to describe the Zimbabwe Cricket leadership as a bunch of fraudsters, abysmal thugs and nasty creatures — in reports in newspapers Down Under and South Africa — we felt that he was entitled to his opinion, foolish as it might appear.

When the same journalist called for the isolation of Zimbabwe from the international cricket family, in his series of damning reports, we also felt that he was — in a global democracy — also entitled to his opinion, stupid as it might appear.

When Roebuck attacked all those men who are seeing the light and returning to their fatherland, to try and play a part in lifting cricket back on its feet after years of paralysis fanned by such media hounds, we also felt that he was also entitled to his flawed opinion.

When the same journalist hailed those who are still stuck in the trenches, fighting the ZC leadership and prolonging their battle to try and destroy domestic cricket, we also felt that the British-born journalist, who turned himself into an Aussie, was entitled to his view.

It might have hurt us, to read our fellow Zimbabweans, in particular, and national sports leaders — for that matter — being branded thugs and nasty creatures but, in a world pregnant with diverse views, we grudgingly accepted that such is the nature of life. Even when Roebuck decided to call ZC chairman Peter Chingoka a snake and a chameleon, we felt that — to quote Aussie cricket captain Ricky Ponting — it was ridiculous and way over the top but we accepted that our world is, indeed, a sticky wicket.

After all we have travelled on this path before — the dosage of vitriol aimed at our cricket leadership over the years, questions about their credibility, questions about their accountability and all the sort of nonsense that goes with such drama.

However, we got worried when we realised that such hogwash, as spat by racist lunatics like Roebuck, actually found its way onto the personal and official website of the minister who is responsible for the welfare of sport in this country.

We acknowledge that we have no business telling the Minister of Education, Sport, Arts and Culture, David Coltart, what to put and what not to put on his personal and official website.

What we have a problem with is when that website, being part of the public domain, is used as a medium to publish the crazy views of such lunatics like Roebuck — especially the part where he describes a bona-fide national sports leader as a snake and a chameleon.

Our problem with Coltart, who personally posted those reports on his official website, is related to the grand question of what he intended to achieve by using his personal medium to publish such inane and crazy views that add nothing to the value of our game?

Was Coltart trying to ensure that the local people, who probably don’t read the Australian and South African newspapers where these reports were first published, would also get a platform from where they could read what Roebuck thinks about Chingoka and his crew?

If so, what was the ultimate objective, and would the ZC leadership be wrong to assume that the minister carries a hidden agenda against them and is just waiting for the right moment to strike as and when it fits his agenda?

What do Zimbabwean readers, in particular, have to gain from reading the views of a deranged Australian journalist — on the website of the minister responsible for local sport — who believes that Prosper Utseya and his troops should be isolated from international cricket so that the game dies here?

What do Zimbabwean readers have to gain, from reading the silly views of a sick man — on the website of the minister responsible for their sport — who criticises those who have accepted the olive branch extended by the ZC leadership and have come back to work for the good of the game? Are we wrong to believe that, by giving such crazy views on his official website and, to make it worse, personally posting them there, Coltart appears to believe every word that Roebuck wrote and wanted more people to get access to such racist rhetoric?

We know that relations between Coltart and the ZC leadership have been tricky, to say the least, because of a background of lack of trust emanating from that dark past when some of the cricket leaders believed he was on the side of the rebels who walked out on the system.

But, even if Coltart was on the side of the rebels, which he was entitled to in a global democracy, it was then — a period of turmoil — and he didn’t have any official or national responsibilities that stopped him from standing in their corner.

Now, thanks to the inclusive Government, things have changed and he is now the parent minister in charge of sport and that means also extending an olive branch to those who might have been on the other side during the dark period of turmoil.

Chingoka and his administrative crew might not be angels in the eyes of a lot of their critics but you can’t take away the fact that they fought for a cause, which was right, to take cricket away from the hands of just a few white men so that the boy in Gokwe could also fancy his chances of playing for his national team one day.

They were accused of being fraudsters but an International Olympic Committee investigations into their accounts cleared them much to the anger of those who have been preaching the gospel that Chingoka and his team were looting Zimbabwe cricket.

If the ICC says that there is no anomaly with their accounts then who are we to question their accountability?

Today Zimbabwe Cricket is slowly taking steps back to its place in the Test arena and it needs the support of everyone and that is why we salute Heath Streak, Dave Houghton, Alistair Campbell and all those who have returned to their fatherland to try and help the game.

We salute Chingoka and his troops for extending that olive branch and letting bygones be bygones where they put the interests of the game ahead of their personal interests.

We have shown, in recent weeks, that we are better than Kenya, as good as Bangladesh which is playing Test cricket and we played so well, in the first ODI against South Africa, the world stood and noticed our qualities.

Domestic cricket is finding its way back to life and not even the stupid attacks from such people like Roebuck — and the unfortunate of the accommodation of their views in an official website of the minister responsible for sport here — can stop that march.

The best that Coltart should do, if he hasn’t done that privately already, is to call Chingoka and apologise for this mess.

Labels: CRICKET, DAVID COLTART

posted by MrK @ 7:58 PM