Money can buy anything but the honour and respect, which are earned the hard way. A very few people have the capacity to swallow such blessings with grace and dignity, while most people cross all limits of decency and try to exploit the position they achieve, of course not on merit but as a windfall.
Such people do not hesitate to put the honour and dignity of the nation and the country for their personal gains, they do not deserve any condonation.
Pakistan Cricket Board's Chief Executive Ramiz Raja, who rose from a mediocre cricketer to the top slot in the PCB, is among those people, who for the sake of money, does not hesitate to even tarnish the image of the country, the nation and the organisation to which he belongs.
Though former PCB Ad hoc Committee Chairman Tauqir Zia described him as the "think tank" of the Cricket Board and his successor Shaharyar M. Khan declared him a competent administrator, his performance as the PCB Chief Executive was never appreciated in the sports circles of the country.
Ramiz Raja's conduct in the commentators' box during Pakistan-India cricket match in Asia Cup has jolted the cricket fans in the country when they saw him singing and playing "Tabla" to entertain his colleague India's former Test cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar.
Surely, he sat there not as a singer, playing "Tabla" and singing songs but as a serious observer to inform the viewers about the game.
However, equally debilitating were the remarks of Australia's former opener Michael Slater, who from the ESPN commentator's box, described him as the "chief entertainment officer" of the PCB.
It would be in the fitness of things if PCB Chairman Shaharyar Khan warns Ramiz to understand that we as Pakistanis, irrespective of the status and stature, are our country's ambassadors when abroad and try to present ourselves in a dignified way.
IRRESPONSIBLE
An irresponsible behaviour of the PCB Chief Executive has already harmed the PCB's image by appearing in TV commercials and doing commentary, no one will appreciate his childish attitude in the commentators' box, destroy not only the country's image but also that of the organisation he represents.
Though Slater was harsh in his remarks, denigrating Ramiz, he could not resist his sentiments to criticise Ramiz for his unsavory performance and call him the "chief entertainment officer" of the PCB.
This is really shameful on the part of the PCB Chief Executive.
Despite being grilled by the Senate Steering Committee on Sports and harsh criticism in the media and cricket circles, Ramiz did not bother to mend his ways.
However, Ramiz's conduct demands of the PCB Chairman to take notice of it and warn him either to do away with the television assignment or quit the PCB
ABBASI RIDICULES
Meanwhile, former PCB Chief Executive Arif Ali Khan Abbasi lambasted the performance of Ramiz Raja as executive head of the Cricket Board.
In an informal chat with Business Recorder the other day, Abbasi was questioned would he accept a commentator's assignment if offered by a television channel, he quipped it would be disgraceful for a chief executive to appear on television as a commentator.
He said no administrative head of a cricket board would steep so law. "This is below the dignity and honour of the organisation he represents," he said.
Abbasi was also critical of the ad hoc culture in the PCB, and said whatever Ramiz was doing was the blessings of five-year-old ad hocism.
To a question, Abbasi said usually the ad hoc committee comprised three or five members, who were assigned a particular task of improvement in an organisation within the shortest possible time not exceeding six months, but in the case of the PCB, there was no such committee.
On the contrary, the PCB was run by a group of people, who had no experience of running cricket affairs, he said.
Abbasi also questioned the PCB's ad hoc administration's authority of making appointments and induction of retired bureaucrats and government officials and even making amendments to the constitution.
He said sooner the PCB constitution was restored in its original form, General Council and General Body was restored and the associations were allowed to work, it would be better for the game.
EYE-OPENER
However, much has been written about Pakistan's miserable failure to defend their Asia Cup title. Laptop white coach Bob Woolmer blamed bonus point for depriving Pakistan a chance to play in the final of the tournament, but at the same time he slammed batsmen for letting him down while playing irresponsible and reckless shots.
Interestingly, Pakistan have the honour of scoring the lowest (122 against Sri Lanka) and highest (300 against India) runs in the tournament. This inconsistent performance of the team exposes tall claims by white Woolmer.
There are no two opinions that Pakistan played below themselves throughout the
tournament, and no one in the PCB knows what steps should be taken to improve the overall performance of the team.
Whatever arguments are given by the coach, PCB Chairman Shaharyar Khan and Chief Executive Ramiz Raja will be unacceptable, as the team did not play to its potential. All those sitting in the Gaddafi Stadium should have picked up soon after the series against India earlier this year, but they did not realise the toughness of the competition and sent an ill-equipped team to Sri Lanka.
Team captain Inzamam-ul-Haq was courageous enough to confess that Pakistan will not be playing under pressure, as India were favourites of the tournament. His main problem was the solid opening partnership and Imran Nazir has failed to provide the required support to his colleague Yasir Hameed.
Though in the second match of the Super League round against India, all-rounder Shoaib Malik, sent at number three and scored 134, he could not be relied upon in every match.
The fact is that since 2003 World Cup Pakistan, except a few victories here and there, have not played well. It is a jolt for the PCB and demands soul-searching within the team and its administration.
RAPID STRIDES
Before leaving Colombo for Cape Town, Bob Woolmer said in a newspaper interview: "We will be reviewing the match against India and our Asia Cup series as a whole and making sure that we do not repeat those errors.
"There is a tour of Australia later in the year apart from the Champions Trophy and we know there is a lot of work to do," Woolmer said.
To make rapid strides, Woolmer said he had enough time to prepare a winning squad for the 2007 World Cup.
Woolmer brushed aside criticism of Pakistan's approach during the final overs of the game against India, and said the approach was to keep it tight.
"So much has been aired on the subject that I would rather now concentrate on building up the side for the tournament in Amsterdam," he said.
"We are building a side and there are structures in place to create a second side. You see so many fast bowlers in the streets of Pakistan that it reminds me of the West Indies a decade or two ago," he said.
He added: "What we have to do is to harness this talent and develop the second structure. All this takes time, but right now my main focus is on the series in Amsterdam and get the players' minds right in terms of the job ahead.
"I have seen a lot of improvement in the side during this tournament and that is encouraging."
No one would disagree with Woolmer's views and plans, but once again the question is that will he be able to implement his plans, as the ad hoc culture in the PCB will never allow him or anybody else to improve the game in the country.
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