The government ought to honour the commitment made to the St. Vincent and the Grenadines Netball Association ( SVGNA) to host the America’s World Cup Netball Qualifiers in October this year, says Opposition Leader Ralph Gonsalves.
He said on Star Radio on Monday that when one government makes a commitment to an entity such as the SVGNA, it must be kept.
The hosting of the tournament in SVG was announced in October 2025, with President of the SVGNA, Natasha Baptiste, stating that the then Unity Labour Party (ULP) Government had issued a letter of commitment to ensure that the Arnos Vale Sporting Complex would be transformed into an indoor facility, which was one of the elements that helped SVG to secure the bid.
However, Kaschaka Cupid, the minister of sports under the New Democratic Party government, which came to office on Nov. 27, informed the SVGNA in a Feb. 5 letter of a Cabinet decision not to proceed with hosting the tournament.
The reason for the decision, Cupid said, was primarily the limited time available to complete the requisite upgrades to the courts identified for use during the competition.
But Gonsalves, speaking on his weekly shows on his party’s radio station, said the government should rethink its decision.
“The people did not vote the NDP, the netballers who voted for the NDP did not vote for the NDP to refuse … the commitment made by the ULP to host the America’s World Cup Qualifiers in October, it’s just wrong,” Gonsalves said.
“First of all, let’s understand what netball is in terms of world ranking: netball is the sport in which St. Vincent and the Grenadines is ranked highest in the world, number 17, and the Netball Association has been doing a pretty good job,” he said.
The leader of the opposition said l the SVGNA had been spending a lot of time preparing for the event.
He said that his ULP Government refurbished the netball court in Old Montrose at a cost of EC$200,000 in preparation for the Windward Island games.
Gonsalves said that although the facility at Arnos Vale was damaged during Hurricane Beryl on July 1, 2024, his government decided not to undertake any work there until an appraisal was conducted.
Gonsalves said there were three options, with Orando Brewster, the ULP administration’s sport minister and the then Finance Minister Camillo Gonsalves contacting people in Trinidad, the then Consul General to Canada, Fitz Huggins, was in contact with a group in that country and there was what he called the Marquee group out of the United Kingdom.
“And we decided to work with the Marquee group because one option was to do a dome. The Netball Association said no, they prefer the steel frame structure and the refurbishment,” Gonsalves said.
That group worked for Invest SVG in constructing the facility used for the Expo in 2025, and while they were in SVG, Gonsalves said that they surveyed what was required at Arnos Vale.
“And we intended shortly after the election, had we won, to begin the process with them to put up the steel frame,” Gonsalves said.
The opposition leader said work on constructing toilets and other attendant facilities would have taken a significant amount of time, with the price tag between EC$5 and EC$6 million.
“And we made sure that we had the resources at hand to be able to do this particular activity, not just for the netballers, for the country.”
He pointed out that women excel at netball but noted that there is a men’s netball team.
“… women play other sports too – cricket, football, tennis, everything – but this historically has been a vital sport for Vincentians and we have a tradition in it.
“You can’t just tell me that you do it because you can’t, you don’t get the money, you don’t get the time,” Gonsalves said.
He spoke of the EC$2.1 million allocated in the 2026 Budget for work on the Official Residence of the Prime Minister and a fleet of vehicles for his use.
“That is one third of the money right there,” Gonsalves said, referring to what he said was the cost of erecting the sports facility.
“This was to be a vital facility for the netballers,” the opposition leader said. “It should have been done.
Cupid ought to have called either Brewster or the former finance minister and inquire how things were progressing with this project, Gonsalves said.
Gonsalves further criticised the government’s allocation of EC$5 million to the National Emergency Management Organisation.
He added that shortly after taking office in 2001, his government was approached by the then-President of the SVG Tennis Association, Mike Nanton, who said the country had been hoping to host the Davis Cup qualifiers.
He said his government managed to get the finances required to stage the tournament.
“You want to tell me we can’t fix up a place to host netballers?” Gonsalves said.
“Of course, they wasted so much time; this thing should have started immediately after the elections because I know the netballers would have been in touch with the government…
“So, I want them to reverse this decision, I want them to reverse the decision, it can be done, it can be done,” Gonsalves said.
The tournament will determine two teams to join the Sunshine Girls of Jamaica and represent the Americas Region at the Netball World Cup in Sydney, Australia, from Aug. 25 to Sept. 5, 2027.
Did the ULP government start to build the indoor facility that was proposed.
So his business, along with family, and constituents’ business make all of the money. No thanks.