Ijaz Butt should also be tried for criminal negligence

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

Ijaz Butt has caused the greatest damage to Pakistan cricket. Never before did anyone destroy the game as severely as he did it for three years. Thankfully his three-year tenure has gone by and a new Chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), Chaudhary Zaka Ashraf, has already taken over.

But his predecessor has done irreparable harm to Pakistan cricket and it will be very difficult to get out of the mess in the near future. Although Ijaz Butt is no more in office, the spot-fixing case, resulting in sentence of Salman Butt, Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Aamir, has a direct relation to him and he has to be blamed for letting them interact with dubious people.

As Chairman of the PCB, Ijaz Butt had the absolute authority. He took all the key decisions himself, the majority of them without consulting the so many highly paid full-time staffers. Neither was he known for taking the members of the Governing Board in confidence on critical issues.

He made all the appointments of managers and assistant managers on tours with nepotism and favouritism being the order of the day. People handpicked to perform these duties were hardly well versed with ABC of modern-day management. Neither did they command the respect of the high-flying cricketers having certain star value.

It was a cruel joke with the nation to have sent people like Yawar Saeed and Shafqat Rana as manager and assistant manager respectively on that crucial and demanding tour England in 2010. Instead of keeping an eye on the players and their movements they were reportedly enjoying hospitality from those very elements ultimately causing the greatest humiliation to Pakistan cricket yet.

How can Ijaz Butt be spared? He was guilty of facilitating the joy-riders who enjoyed all-paid trips of nearly every continent of the world. He was there to oblige his cronies without caring the interest of the national team.

The spot-fixing incidents in England could have been avoided if there was a proper PCB setup in place and no one there to dictate terms like Ijaz Butt. It was a case of completely anarchy and the cricketers were free to do as they pleased.

The cricketers found guilty by the London court and the International Cricket Council (ICC) are serving their sentence. But what about Ijaz Butt? Shouldn’t he be tried also for having done so much damage to the cause of cricket which remains the binding force in the country?

Cricket is not just another sport in Pakistan. It’s the game of the masses in this part of the world and people are emotionally associated with it. Hasn’t Ijaz Butt betrayed the nation with his barbaric acts? Hasn’t he caused loss of billions of Rupees to the national exchequer?

There is a court of law in Pakistan as well. The Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Pakistan, Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhary, has become legendary by taking so many suo motto actions for the larger interest of the people.

The present government is unlikely to try Ijaz Butt for obvious reasons but all eyes are on the Chief Justice who can summon him to the court to explain how he compromised on national interests for three years running.

Another duel between Shahid Afridi and Ijaz Butt culminates tamely

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

It wasn’t a dispute between the Chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) and a former captain of the national team. It was rather yet another duel between two key personalities who showed muscles before succumbing to the different pressures and opting for a peaceful settlement in the end.

Both these characters have done Pakistan cricket more harm than doing good. The problem is that they engage the whole nation with their adventures. The temperament of both these gentlemen, Ijaz Butt and Shahid Afridi, overshadows their respective talents. We have just seen a new episode.

There’s something in common as well between these two. They take pride being in the news for the wrong reasons. Their modus operandi might be a little different but the same could not be said about their motives. They desire continue doing things as they please.

Ijaz Butt is a man of many moods. It’s simply the misfortune of the country that he has been assigned to look after the cricket affairs of the country. The powers that be are just not interested to take note of his wrongdoings. In fact he appears to have been granted the license to operate in the manner he desires, ignoring all norms or practices.

Nobody in the government has the time or interest to confront him. He is considered above the law, enjoying the absolute authority. He is not accountable for any act of his, irrespective of the damage caused to the national interest.

When the Chairman of the PCB could take everyone for ride, why not the captain of the team who has certain powers within his own right? Shahid Afridi has certainly lost favour as well as captaincy of late but he has his own men in the corridors of power.

Shahid Afridi could never be taken for granted. Aware of the fact that merit was not the criterion for extending his tenure as captain he probably went overboard on a few occasions to offend Ijaz Butt who used his powers to remove him as ODI captain.

Shahid Afridi didn’t accept the verdict gracefully and announced his retirement from international cricket. He skipped the tour of Ireland where Pakistan won both the games in his absence.

The gulf between the two kept widening and it became a political battle whereby both sides left no stone unturned in mobilizing their resources to continue making headline news. Shahid Afridi returned home to a kind of reception as if an exiled leader was making a comeback.

Ijaz Butt did not take the criticism lightly either. He initiated disciplinary action against the former captain who was not prepared to defend either. The matter went to the court.

Then the anti-climax followed. A meeting was held between the two in Islamabad the other day and Shahid Afridi reportedly agreed to withdraw the petition. He is now likely to be issued the No-Objection Certificate (NOC) by Ijaz Butt very soon thus clearing the way for him to play for Hampshire.

"The petition has been withdrawn as a part of the reconciliation between both sides. If the petition has borne fruit then there is no objection or obstacle in withdrawing a petition,” Syed Ali Zafar, Shahid Afridi's lawyer, was quoted as saying.

"We hope that the NOC will now be granted. The disciplinary committee hearing will be a kind of formality now,” he reckoned.