LAHORE: Shah Khawer, the current election commissioner of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), is set to take on the role of the board’s acting chairman on Wednesday.

His primary responsibility lies in overseeing the elections for a regular PCB chairman for a three-year tenure. However, concerns arise over the potential implications of holding these elections prior to the impending general elections on February 8.

The recurring trend of elected PCB chairmen being dismissed by the succeeding government has raised apprehensions within the cricketing circles. This historical precedent has unfolded multiple times in the past, creating instability within the PCB’s leadership.

Adding to the shuffle, the notification of current caretaker Punjab Chief Minister Mohsin Naqvi as a member of the Board of Governors (BoG) has been formally issued by Prime Minister Anwar-ul-Haq Kakar, as confirmed by a PCB spokesperson on Tuesday. Mohsin is poised to replace Zaka Ashraf on the BoG.

Speculations are rife that the election commissioner will expedite the polls for a regular PCB chairman immediately after finalising the BoG, constituting the electoral college responsible for electing the chairman.

This process involves selecting four representatives each from the regional cricket associations and affiliated departments, a task fraught with challenges.

Additionally, two nominees from the prime minister, Mohsin Naqvi and the already nominated Mustafa Ramday, would complete the 10-member BoG before the elections.

However, with Kakar set to leave office post-general elections, a potential power struggle looms between the future premier and the PCB chairman at that point.

Historical instances of such conflicts damaging the PCB’s functionality include episodes in 2013 (between former PM Nawaz Sharif and Zaka), 2018 (Imran Khan versus Najam Sethi), and 2022 (Shahbaz Sharif against Ramiz Raja).

Since Ramiz’s removal as PCB chairman in 2022, leading to the appointment of Najam Sethi on an ad hoc basis, the PCB’s operations have suffered significant setbacks.

Despite a six-month tenure, Sethi failed to conduct elections for a regular PCB chairman. Subsequently, Zaka was granted seven months for the same task but encountered a similar fate.

These prolonged delays spanning 13 months severely impacted Pakistan cricket. The apprehension now lies in the potential repetition of a power struggle.

The failure of both Sethi and Zaka to finalise the BoG stemmed from their attempts to include representatives who would vote in their favor from the regional cricket associations and departments. Legal battles ensued over the composition of the BoG. As the PCB’s patron-in-chief, the Prime Minister holds the constitutional right to make nominate a BoG member.

Published in Dawn, January 24th, 2024