BCB CONSTITUTIONAL CRISIS AND EFFECTS (2)
Regional bodies in shelves
It has been eight months since the Bangladesh Cricket Board is being run by an ad hoc committee. A constitutional crisis the resolution of which is pending with court prevented the BCB from holding an election, giving the Nazmul Hasan-led committee an extended time in office. The crisis already started taking its toll on the organisation and in this series of reports, we look into subjects badly affected by the absence of an elected body.
The much-talked-about regional cricket association could not be formed despite its constitution was approved by the Bangladesh Cricket Board annual general meeting in March 2012.
The same meeting also approved the BCB’s amended constitution, but the National Sport Council, the sports regulatory body, brought further changes to it twice forcing a group of organisers to drag the matter to court.
Cricket administrators said the regional cricket associations will not take any shape unless the crisis over the BCB constitution is resolved as it is directly related to the matter.
The necessity of cricket being decentralised had been discussed before Bangladesh became a Test nation with South African Edie Barlow joining the BCB as director of development.
It formed a part of Bangladesh’s presentation in their bid for Test status, though the plan did not gather any momentum until AHM Mustafa Kamal became the BCB president in September 23, 2009.
In his first press conference as BCB president Kamal said one of his major goals will be to decentralise cricket administration and it is fair to say he did his best to fulfil the commitment.
A cricket administrator, who was a BCB director when Kamal was its president, said the matter was discussed almost at every meeting, but it was being delayed because of the opposition of some Dhaka-based club organisers.
Despite the opposition from the club organisers, the BCB finally decided to set up eight regional cricket associations with seven associations in seven divisions and one for the Dhaka metropolitan area
It was also decided that the cricket committee of Dhaka metropolis, which currently organises different leagues in Dhaka, will be abolished with regional cricket associations coming into effect.
The draft constitution of the associations was distributed among the BCB directors for their feedback in a meeting in Sylhet on July 16, 2011 before it was finally approved at the AGM the following year.
Sirjuddin Mohammad Alamgir, a former BCB director and the general secretary of Chittagong Divisional Sports Association, is, however, still doubtful about the club organisers’ sincerity on the issue.
‘The current BCB constitution says until the regional cricket association takes a shape the divisional sports association will play the role. But we were never given the responsibility,’ said Alamgir.
‘Some club organisers do not want us to take any responsibility. I saw some former cricketers also opposing the move.
‘They can say many things sitting in the air-condition room of the television channels. Many of them do not know at all how we run cricket at the grassroots level.
‘With the formation of regional association I think cricket will be tremendously benefited,’ he said. ‘We have six stadiums in six divisional headquarters. The BCB could have easily taken control of them with the formation of regional cricket associations.’
Ahmed Sazzadul Alam, a former BCB vice-president and now a member of the ad hoc committee, however, is in favour of implementing the idea in phases only.
‘I must say regional cricket association is a good concept. But before making them completely an autonomous body we have to resolve many issues.’ he said.
‘Having said that I don’t mean I am against the idea. At some stage we have to start it. Cricket has now become very big and everything cannot be controlled from Dhaka.
‘I am just talking about the ground reality. Unless we can make the regional association functioning independently, help them build their capacity it will not bring any benefit. We must make them acting like a mini-BCB,’ he said.
-With New Age input
