Pakistan Cricket Board and Islamabad Club: A Critical Examination of Financial and Administrative Mismanagement

 

Musarrat Ullah Jan – Kikxnow Digital Creator

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) and Islamabad Club—two institutions whose very names bring to mind cricket and old-fashioned club tradition—are, by recent audit reports, embroiled in financial mismanagement and legal loopholes. Though the official function of these institutions is to offer recreation and sporting facilities to the members and the public, the reports identify that they occasionally play a sort of "funds juggling act" where millions and billions of rupees float about in a queer manner.

As per the audit report, PCB remitted around PKR 5.529 million to the Islamabad Cricket Association (ICA) from 2012 to 2019 for the Diamond Cricket Ground despite the fact that the agreement explicitly mentioned that the ground should be made available to PCB on a free-of-cost basis. The audit terms this payment as illegal and an evident display of administrative negligence. PCB asserted that an investigation had already been carried out, yet the audit stated that the responsibility and recovery of the money are still unresolved.

In an allied case related to the same Diamond Cricket Ground, ICA rented out a lease to Mr. Nasir Iqbal/Mr. Shakeel Ahmed Shaikh, and PCB paid PKR 3.955 million as rent between the years 2008 to 2018. This action of the audit was deemed illegal due to the ground being owned by the Capital Development Authority (CDA) and payments being made without checking the ownership documents, leaving room for misappropriation. PCB's management asserts that an inquiry was held, but the recovery and accountability are not clear.

PCB gave international media rights of the New Zealand series to M/s Trans Group FZE and ARY for USD 99,999 (~PKR 27.45 million) without a transparent competitive process. Audit reports highlight that according to the Public Procurement Rules, 2004, tenders over PKR 3 million are required to be advertised in a minimum of two national newspapers (one English and one Urdu), which was not done by PCB. The board’s explanation—that they advertised on PPRA and PCB websites and notified some bidders directly—was rejected by the audit, as it deprived PCB of potentially better competitive rates.

If rent payments and media rights make you laugh, PCB’s outstanding sponsorship funds will leave you in disbelief. The audit showed that PKR 5,340.133 million was unpaid up to June 2024 by entities such as ARY, Blitz Advertising, Trans Group FZE, and so on. Management of PCB asserts PKR 3 billion has been recovered, PKR 1.472 billion is pending in court, and attempts are being made for recovery of the remaining PKR 840 million. Such a thing reflects the board's inability to obtain rightful revenues from its contracts.

Islamabad Club prepared its Financial Regulations in 2022 without obtaining advance approval from the Finance Division, which goes against Section 18 of the Public Finance Management Act, 2019. Audit pointed out that such regulations, as they involve financial implications, need mandatory vetting prior to implementation. The management of the club did not comment on the audit observation, and no meeting of the DAC was held till the report was completed.

Auditor reports showed that Islamabad Club gained PKR 22.16 million in 2023-24 from renting its cricket field, auditorium, futsal court, and golf hall. Sale of flowers and plants was also included. The audit concluded that such commercial activities are against the mandate of the club, which is providing recreation and relaxation only to federal officers and diplomatic personnel and not generating commercial income. Management did not react, and the audit suggested that unauthorized activities should be brought to a stop immediately.

If this were a novel, readers would be laughing until they hurled the book around the room. But these are actual events. PCB and Islamabad Club are demonstrating a pattern of "funds acrobatics" in which millions and billions are juggled around, sometimes legally, sometimes questionably. Unsanctioned payments, fictitious leases, irregular awards of media rights, outstanding sponsorship fees, untested financial rules, and commercial club facilities misuse—all these put together present a scenario whose financial management is that of a comedy-drama television show, costly but amusing.

The audit always advises accountability, recoupment of funds, and compliance with the law in every case. However, management responses have been missing or limited, leading one to wonder if these institutions know their own rules and financial obligations.

This report is a reminder that institutions governing sport and recreation, be they cricket boards or social clubs, cannot function without transparency, legal compliance, and financial prudence. Humorously put, PCB and Islamabad Club authorities seem to be more "magicians of funds" and less "financial administrators," conjuring millions into existence and making them vanish into thin air at their will.

PCB and Islamabad Club have been subjected to repeated cases of financial and administrative mismanagement as per recent audits.

Unapproved payments,phony leases, inappropriate media rights, unpaid sponsorship fees, unapproved financial regulations, and commercial abuse all contravene lawful and procedural standards.Audits suggest retrieval of money, responsibility, and proper screening to avoid unlawful and opaque operations.

 Prompt corrective measures must be undertaken to uphold public trust; otherwise, these instances will be expensive lessons served with a bitter irony.

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