C O L U M N S

ISLAMABAD, Nov 9: The newly formed Senate Standing Committee on Sports will meet on Tuesday and is expected to take up the implementation of a ruling that demanded change in the management of the Pakistan Cricket Board.

The Senate committee had unanimously passed a consensus resolution in March this year, that ‘the present management of the PCB be replaced immediately with induction of competent people to run the board’.

Senators Tahir Mashhadi, Enver Baig, Haroon Akhtar Khan, Dr Firdaus Kausar, Nilofer Bakhtiar and Sabina Rauf had signed the resolution at the Senate Secretariat but it never got implemented putting a question mark over the implementation phase of an upper house committee’s ruling.

With only two members left on the new committee — Tahir Mashhadi and Haroon Khan — it will be its test to get its old ruling implemented.

“If the PCB is on the agenda of the new committee meeting than they should bring it to the house and send their recommendations to Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani and President Asif Ali Zardari, also the patron of the board, for implementation,” said a former Senator Enver Baig.

“The implementation of our ruling will be a key factor of success of this committee otherwise we will be back to square one,” said Baig, a vocal critic of PCB’s functioning.

The Senate committee’s suggestions were highlighted by the media and sports analysts in the recent past but their [committee’s] suggestions hardly get implemented putting a question mark over the performance of respected upper house forum.

Asked to comment about the new committee, Baig added: “All that matters is continuity of good suggestions and rulings for the betterment of sports and if they [new members] continue with the same pace of work like the way we have done in the past then it will be great service for the nation.”

A Senate official, on condition of anonymity said: “Federal Sports Minister Pir Aftab Shah Jilani along with the top officials of the ministry will give a comprehensive briefing to the sports committee members.

“We have already received a draft of presentation which includes a chapter each on PCB, Pakistan Sports Board and Pakistan Olympic Association.”

By Imran Ali Teepu