St. John's (Antigua): The West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) is contemplating legal action in the face of what it considered to be allegations of "wrongdoing and misappropriation of WICB funds by present members" by former board officials.
Pointing to calls for a forensic audit of the WICB's finances in a media report, the board said these were "without any basis in fact" and "completely false, and seriously damaging" to the board's members and auditors, reports CMC.
Further, WICB slammed the calls by former officials as an "emotional reaction" to its decision to snub a recent governance report, which had recommended the immediate dissolution of the board.
"The WICB notes that these allegations appear triggered not by fact or evidence, but an emotional reaction to the WICB's response to the report and other matters. These officials have completely ignored the written responses of the WICB," the board said in a release on Thursday.
"The board has been advised that in a number of instances, the call for a forensic audit carries the suggestion of wrongdoing and misappropriation of WICB funds by present members of the WICB."
The release continued: "Additionally, it suggests the auditors are either incompetent or complicit. These allegations are completely false and seriously damaging to the reputation of the WICB, its members, and auditors."
"The WICB has, therefore, decided that these are serious allegations and has referred the matter to Senior Counsel Anthony Astaphan of Dominica for his advice and recommendations."
In its push back against the former officials, the WICB said on Thursday that audits had been conducted by independent companies Price Waterhouse and KPMG, and reports had been made available to the public.
"These calls for a forensic audit by the former officials are without any basis in fact, and importantly, notwithstanding that these former officials are aware that the WICB has for many years retained internal and external auditors," the board argued.
"The board's internal and external audits are done and authorised by Price Waterhouse and KPMG, respectively, and accounts are published by or available from the WICB on all its platforms, including the website, where the reports are available."
Last weekend, following a board of directors meeting in Roseau, WICB announced that it was forecasting a surplus for the financial year ending September 30.