Fresh call for CISNOC board to resign

Still not satisfied with CISNOC management, members of the tennis sport code are again calling for all executive board members to resign.

Tennis Cook Islands Inc has been spearheading initiatives with fellow members of the Cook Islands Sports and National Olympic Committee (CISNOC) for accountability and change within the organisation.

The code was instrumental in calling for a special general meeting of CISNOC on November 8, which attracted almost 100 members of the organisation and public at large.

An agenda for the meeting included a request for all CISNOC executives to resign, following accusations that CISNOC has been poorly managed over the past two years and is now up to $200,000 in debt.

A meeting of the organisation, closed to media and the public, took place last night in order for treasurer Dan OBrien to provide members with updated financial accounts.

Cook Islands News hopes to publicly disclose the information presented to members by OBrien, despite CISNOC president Sir Geoffrey Henrys decision to ban all media from the meeting.

In preparation of the meeting, Tennis Cook Islands president Madeilene Sword sent a list of ideas to CISNOCs executive board.

Suggestions include greater communication by executives, a CISNOC staff review, constitution review, reduction in board numbers and regular disclosure of accounts.

There has been a considerable lack of transparency and accountability, and we trust that with the EB (executive board) ideas and those above, we can together move forward, Sword says.

Tennis Cook Islands representative on CISNOC Brian Baudinet has also circulated a comprehensive email to fellow members, summarising the November 8 special general meeting and the sport codes position accordingly.

Baudinet says CISNOCs executives have not delivered on promises to provide clarity to the membership about finances, improved methods of communication and attempts to rectify debt leading to a continuing position of confusion.

Baudinet claims CISNOCs $54,000 overdraft at the Bank of the Cook Islands (BCI) from January 1 this year has not been paid off and the total new debt landed on CISNOC this year is $278,000 made up of a debt of $98,000 to its trust fund, a debt of $126,000 to government and the BCI overdraft.

He claims CISNOC employees were recently owed wages and that the finances are generally a mess.

Over the last two years CISNOC have taken us on a roller coaster journey, from a reasonable financial position to a total mess of now probably in excess of $200,000. CISNOC cannot pay all its bills, and therefore those responsible must resign.

As we did on November 8, we now again call for the resignation of the entire CISNOC board.

The November 8 meeting highlighted widespread support among sport code representatives for change in the organisation.

Executives refused to resign, but indicated they are willing to welcome new members particularly those with special finance and management skills.

It may be that such change is unable to take place until CISNOCs next annual general meeting, at least a few months away.