AMONG things where the caretaker government appeared to go beyond its mandate was the appointment of Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman. Just days before packing its bags, the care- taker prime minister nominated the caretaker Punjab chief minister as a member of the PCB Board of Governors, and, as could only be expected, the board within no time ‘elected’ him the new PCB chief.

As a matter of fact, and to the best of my knowledge and understanding, the relevant clause — Article 10 (1) (d) of the PCB constitution — gives such powers to the prime minister, not the caretaker prime minister.

Besides, in any case, the mandate of a caretaker setup happens to be limited. It is supposed to hold general elections and run the day-to-day affairs of the country until an elected government takes over its rightful place.

However, it is not understood as to how and under what powers the caretaker establishment decided to exercise the powers of an elected government in every field. It even appointed many trade officers for overseas missions as well as made a number of other appointments that could have been conveniently deferred till the formation of an elected government after the general election.

As far as the pre-appointment exercise for the PCB chairman is concerned, the latest as well as the preceding appoint-ments were made purely on political grounds, which made the decisions even worse than they would have been otherwise.

Truth be told, the PCB has been run this way for a very long time. One fails to understand why people having no background either in cricket or in corporate management are appointed to head the PCB. It is natural that once the top appointment stands politicised, all subsequent appointments are made in pretty much the same spirit. Will the incoming government change the pattern?

Khawaja Tajammul Hussain
Karachi

Published in Dawn, February 13th, 2024