President of the Dominica Olympic Committee (DOC) Billy Doctrove has said the organization’s new executive faced profound difficulties in its first 100 days in office.
Doctrove took over on May 18, 2017, as President of the DOC and said the new executive was confronted by a series of problems including a poor office, low staff morale, an inadequate accounting system and waste.
“It has been a very revealing and informative 100 days. We were confronted by profound difficulties. The Secretary General and I went the next day to the DOC’s office and spent over three hours there and immediately we recognize the severity of the task ahead,” he said at a press conference on August 28, 2017.
He described the DOC’s office as a “dump” and stated that staff morale was low.
“I consider the office to be a dump, an office within a storeroom and I realized that an organization like the DOC, this was not acceptable. The staff morale was very low. We were not happy about the physical appearance of the office. We were taken aback by the accounting system that was in place which was largely inadequate. Basic information we required could not be given to us by the staff since they were kept in the dark,” he stated.
He said the new executive realized that matters had to be turned around quickly.
“And so, we quickly came to the conclusion and realization that things could not continue in this matter and we needed to turn things around immediately. Tough decisions had to be taken. We had a very great meeting with the staff. It was very cordial and they had not had a staff meeting before,” he noted.
Doctrove said the decision was taken to move the office of the DOC.
“We then took the decision to relocate the office of the DOC. I could not believe that an organization like the DOC could have been handled in such a haphazard manner,” Doctrove stated.
He also stated that there was a lot of waste at the DOC.
“We found a lot of waste in the DOC,” he said and chastised the former executive for using the DOC funds to go to Australia on what he said was “a waste of time with nothing in it for Dominica.”
“What I was even more displeased about, is in finding out that two members of the Felix Wilson-led executive accepted an invitation to go to Australia for three days just to observe – that invitation was extended to all the Olympic Committees in the Caribbean and only three accepted it ( including Dominica) because you had to meet your own cost. DOC spent $65,000.00 to go with no benefit to Dominica; this was just unacceptable,” he noted. “The last DOC executive did an extreme injustice to sports development in Dominica…the friction and fraction that was in the executive. We have now put in place proper and new accounting procedures.”
He also took a swipe at the local associations calling upon them to “put their house in order.”
“We cannot continue to accept and or reward mediocrity. We are very concerned about the way many associations conduct affair…no meetings, no local activities, no functioning executions and yet want to represent Dominica at regional tournaments. This cannot continue to happen. We have met some associations and given them deadlines,” he stated.
He thanked the staff for their hard work and dedication and the Barbados Olympic Committee, who he said, welcomed his executive and gave them serious eye openers into the Olympic movement.
billy my friend you should not let those politicians pull your strings. just do your thing your are bigger than them.
Find the facts.get the evidence and bring proceedings,
LP mi
Transparency, accountability is what is needed in Dominica, with strong, decent, honest no Bobol leaders. That has stained Dominica, we want no more corrupt leadership. All fraudsters must go, who the cap fit, let them where it.
Chastised the former executive for using the DOC funds to go to Australia on what he said was “a waste of time with nothing in it for Dominica.”The last DOC executive did an extreme injustice to sports development in Dominica…the friction and fraction that was in the executive. We have now put in place proper and new accounting procedures.”
Man… I wish I could put a Billy Doctrove at the helm of every public office in the island. This is how progress is made. You doing great, keep it up!
Billy, you just continue on that path (with your executive and staff beside you) and you must succeed. Best wishes.
Sounds liks our government. Its the same way the country is runned.
It is the complete opposite… are you able to properly read?
If our country could be run by a leader like Billy… maybe I would stop hating on the idea of Government.
The colors running for power should take a lesson from the way this office is being handled… Seriously!!!
@Shaka Zulu. I like that..They are afraid to death of these two words “transparency and accountability”…
“transparency” and “accountability”
At least you have started on a platform of transparency, something fiendishly lacking by our government. I wish you well as you continue to work on our behalf.
Thank you Mr. Doctrove. Please continue you good stewardship.
Great job Billy lets try to move ahead and get things done the right way and try to take the country places
you will always have opposition but pay them no mind because that’s what Dominican do best is oppose
keep up the good work.
Very refreshing. Finally somebody is serious about the organization rather than being in it for themselves. I always suspected Wilson was flying here, there and everywhere as if he was taking expense paid vacations.
I travel on business a lot, and frankly, I do it because I have to. I would much rather eat my wife’s cooking and sleep in my bed. I found it strange these guys were so eager travel “on business”.
Thanks for clearing out the stables Billy. If necessary take legal steps against anyone that has misappropriated much needed funds for the development of sports in our country. Bless you.
Yesh, and then contract foreign athletes like merceneraries to justify their lifestyle.
Way to Go Billy!! I wish we some people running major departments and organizations had half the courage passion, astute leadership, accountability and fair mindedness that you had in conducting business effectively while keeping in mind the bigger picture and also making your employees feel valued appreciated, and involved. I always wish DA was better represented in more numbers at sporting events regionally and internationally. Now we know where the money has gone Or do we???