Bassarath: Late President was Trini to the bone

The Trinidad and Tobago Cricket Board joined the rest of the national community in mourning the passing of former President of the Republic, George Maxwell Richards.

By virtue of holding the highest office in the land, Professor Richards was the patron of the TTCB and would be remembered as a great friend of the national sport organisation.

Richards, 86, died of a suspected heart attack on Monday. He was Trinidad and Tobago’s fourth President and served two five-year terms from 2003 to 2013. A chemical engineer by training, he also served as principal of the St Augustine Campus of the University of the West Indies in Trinidad from 1984 to 1996.

On Tuesday, head of the TTCB, Azim Bassarath said he was saddened to learn of Richards’ demise and extended his condolences on behalf of himself, the organisation he leads, and the national cricket community to his widow Dr Jean Ramjohn-Richards and their family. “President Richards was a true patriot, a Trini to the bone who made everyone around him comfortable. And he not ashamed to say that his wife was the cricket expert in the family, though he loved the game and supported us,” said Bassarath.

The TTCB boss said that in the past two weeks the local cricket fraternity has been hard-hit with the loss of two stalwarts of the game. He said long-serving umpire Clyde Cumberbatch was buried last Saturday, while former Police batsman and TTCB’s Queen’s Park Oval Office Manager Ronald Cape was cremated on Tuesday.

“So we are very sad to lose another valued member of the cricket fraternity, our much loved former patron whom the TTCB was pleased to have been associated with,” said Bassarath.