Western Bureau:

So, finally, the way has been cleared for star batsman Christopher Gayle to make his long-overdue return to the West Indies team, which has been floundering at best in the absence of his explosive batting at the top of the order.

I am happy that having decided to stand up and defend his integrity against the unwarranted assault on his character by elements within the ranks of the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB), Gayle did not wilt under the pressure that came his way.

While Gayle's tenacity must be admired, especially against the background of the absence of quality support from the Jamaica Cricket Board and other influential voices in West Indies cricket, I believe the real champion in the whole scenario was Prime Minister Portia Simpson Miller.

After watching her predecessors avoid the issue like the plague, it was just fabulous to watch Simpson Miller demonstrating strength of character in confronting the WICB and demanding justice for Gayle.

It should also be noted that when the WICB rudely tried to slight Simpson Miller, by intimating that she was ignorant of the facts, she not only refused to back down but hit back so decisively through CARICOM that the unreasonable men of the WICB must be still trembling in their boots.

As a Jamaican who grew up admiring the courage and tenacity of men like former prime minister Michael Manley and trade union stalwart Dr Trevor Munroe, I am mightily proud of Simpson Miller and her unflinching stance in confronting injustice.

I am particularly pleased that Simpson Miller showed the WICB that ego and the mad crave for relevance should not overshadow West Indies cricket, which belongs to the people of the Caribbean and not a group of men consumed by their own self-importance.

I do hope that having backed Simpson Miller in her courageous stance against the WICB, the other prime ministers within CARICOM will now begin to seriously look at the whole idea of restructuring West Indies cricket so that it can once again become a source of pride for the people of the Caribbean.

When I look at the many instances in which the WICB has been made to look stupid in arbitration matters involving the West Indies Players Association, it would appear that in addition to arrogance, the board is also being plagued by gross incompetence.

Having showed that she has more guts than those who were prepared to stand by and do nothing to assist Gayle in his dilemma, I would like to see Simpson Miller spearhead another campaign to make the WICB more accountable to the Caribbean people.

With Gayle now again in consideration for selection to the West Indies team, I hope his request to honour his various Twenty20 contracts will be kept so that when he does get back into the team there will be nothing on the periphery to distract him.

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