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| June 1, 2005 | Wednesday | Rabi-us-Sani 23, 1426 |
Local associations to protest against PCB
LAHORE, May 31: The city cricket associations of Karachi and Lahore will meet president of Pakistan and stage protest meetings over new cricket board constitution in front of press clubs and PCB offices until their demands are met, said the cricket chiefs on Tuesday.
Aamir Hayat Khan Rokri, president of the Lahore City Cricket Association (LCCA) and Sirajul Islam Bukhari, secretary of the Karachi City Cricket Association told a press conference that the board was trying to implement the new constitution without suspending the existing one.
Bukhari said the board was misguiding the president of Pakistan, who is also patron-in-chief of the Pakistan Cricket Board, about implementing the new constitution.
“The board officials, under the pretext of patron-in-chief’s pressing engagements as head of state, are taking steps to strengthen their own positions at the expense of city associations,” he said.
The board had included clauses in the constitution, which bar politicians, government officials and those who have completed two terms in office, from running for city associations, said Rokri adding that the “step (will help PCB) get the officials of their choice elected to LCCA and KCCA”.
He claimed the director PCB, Abbas Zaidi, had admitted to him that the decision was aimed at restricting powerful persons from contesting the polls since the board felt itself helpless against strong persons on general council.
Rokri said that the PCB was bound to pay LCCA and KCCA their share in the income from international matches held over last six years. “Despite several reminders the PCB is still reluctant to release the share and we think it is a step to weaken the associations,” he said.
He said that the PCB funds were being squandered on officials touring foreign countries. Besides, the board announced bonus for its employees when Pakistan team won in India, he said raising the question what contribution the employees had made to the win who had already been drawing hefty salaries.
If the board gives half the amount it is paying its employees, to the city associations, they can do a lot to help the game flourish at grass roots level, he said adding that the board spent millions of rupees on establishing school cricket and ignored clubs.
Rokri claimed that the PCB chairman Shaharyar M Khan had also made a promise in this regard but failed to fulfil it. He (chairman PCB) was willing to fulfil the promise but it was the “paid bureaucracy” of the board which did not want it, he said.
He said that the action committee of the city associations was scheduled to meet on Tuesday, but had to cancel it due to the death of great legendary pace bowler Fazal Mahmood. The committee would meet soon, he said.
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