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In the words of a former Barbadian Prime Minister, something had to give.

And I must admit that I wasn't surprised that former West Indies Cricket Board president Pat Rousseau and his deputy Clarvis Joseph resigned forthwith, after leading commentator Andrew Mason broke the news on 900 AM's Saturday Sports programme, that by a vote of 10-4 the board had decided to reverse the dismissal of Ricky Skeritt as manager of the West Indies team.

I reasoned that there was no other option and it would have been the only honourable thing to do. If anything, I thought that chief executive officer Gregory Shillingford would have joined them seeing that he was part of the threesome that gave Skeritt his marching orders. However, I won't be surprised if he follows suit because, morally, he might find it difficult to continue working with a man whom he found wanting in certain areas.

It is only fair to deduce that the morally-wounded brought their downfall on themselves. Ever since Skeritt's dismissal by e-mail, the average pundit expressed extreme disappointment at the manner in which it was done. In Barbadian terms it wasn't decent. To be fired by e- mail perhaps created a precedent in industrial relations in the Caribbean.

To many, the Kittitian's sacking stemmed from a leadership style of high-handedness where only a few made key decisions that affected the lives of six million West Indians.

It all proved to be the final straw in Rousseau's five-year tenure in which there were quite a few controversies. There were cases where the names of over-aged players have been submitted for international youth tournaments, a test match was abandoned even before the first session was completed; arguably a subtle attempt to marginalise West Indies cricket by hosting the final of the Red stripe Bowl in one country since its inception, and the non-functioning of key committees among others.

All told, such incidents have conspired to shame the face of West Indies cricket. In fact, I believe the very spirit and body of West Indies cricket has been severely injured because if we don't get it right off the field in the engine room, then some, or all of it, must filter down on the field.

In many instances it was a case of who guards the guards? Who were the chiefs accountable to especially in light of several administrative mistakes and which went unpunishable from what we could see. There wasn't the level of accountability that Mr Rousseau promised when he took office in 1996.

Ironically, it would seem that the former president's own board finally invoked this pledge to his disadvantage last weekend, finally!

The lesson for whoever takes over the reins of West Indies cricket is that they should be less autocratic and be more open to general ideas, giving all the stakeholders a chance to feel their input is worthy and meaningful.

The impression was given that this wasn't always the case and it culminated in the fall of a president who may have had the best of intentions for West Indies cricket, but didn't always lean on the politics of inclusion like another of our leaders.

Maybe it is all instructive that the prudence of proven Barbadian leadership is required again at the helm of West Indies cricket for it to see the light of day again. But that's a different matter altogether.

© The Barbados Nation