Former Presidents of the seven regional cricket associations from across the country have asked Chairman Pakistan Cricket Board Muhammad Zaka Ashraf to step down from the office as he has taken a number of unconstitutional decisions to put the regional bodies under ad-hoc which harms the game at grass root level.
The representatives of the various bodies led by President, Lahore City Cricket Association Khawaja Nadim Ahmed and MPA Mian Munir Ahmad, President Multan region, Malik Zulfiqar, President Sialkot region, Aamir Nawab, President Abbottabad region, Chaudhary Anwar, President Faisalabad and joined by Prof Sirajul Islam Bokhari of Karachi region and Ali HaiderTalpur of Hyderabad region and former Pakistan captain, Rashid Latif on phone expressed their resolve to continue their struggle to safeguard the rights of the regional cricket bodies.
In a joint press conference here on Tuesday they informed that the PCB Chairman has taken a number of unconstitutional decisions to remain in power by sidelining the regional bodies as out of total eleven, nine regional bodies are under ad-hoc.
‘His election is dubious as he elected himself with the help of a governing board comprising paid employees of the board,’ said Kh Nadim who read his out eight-point agenda focusing that how the Chairman PCB denied the important role of regional bodies and eventually imposing ad-hoc on them to accommodate his own favourites in the regional bodies to get favourable decisions.
The LCCA president said it was the success of the cricket that majority of the high ups of the regional bodies have assembled at one platform to raise their voice against the unconstitutional acts of the chairman.
‘During the past one and half years different tactics were used to ignore the regional bodies and their importance and role in the development of cricket at early level,’ he said. ‘Then the stage came when the rights of the regional bodies were crushed by imposing ad-hoc on them which was a unconstitutional act,’ he added.
Mian Munir said it was for the first time in the history of Pakistan cricket that PCB put ad-hoc on majority of the regional bodies which was an alarming sign.
Malik Zulfiqar said they will stage sit in, in front of the Gaddafi Stadium and all the major cricket stadiums all over the country to register their protest against the ongoing negative campaign of the PCB against the regional bodies.
Aamir Nawab called for introducing democracy in the board by giving the due and legal right of the regional bodies in the board of governors. ‘If no attention is paid to resolve our genuine problems we will be left with no option but to seek justice from ICC and ACC’, Ch Anwar said.
Prof Sirajul Islam, Ali Haider Talpur and Rashid Latif fully endorsed the stance of the representative of the regional bodies and assured their full support .
