Youth and sports adviser Asif Mahmud Shojib Bhuyain stated on Saturday that Faruque Ahmed's dismissal from the position of cricket board president was solely based on performance. This decision comes as the country seeks to address the decline of its most popular sport.
Faruque, a former national cricketer, was replaced by ex-captain Aminul Islam Bulbul as the new BCB president following concerns over leadership failures, particularly surrounding the Bangladesh Premier League.
鈥榃e had certain expectations from the cricket board. Unfortunately, we did not see development matching those expectations. The state of cricket is deteriorating day by day. I cannot let cricket sink under my watch,鈥� Asif told reporters during the national handball championship on Sunday.
He said the leadership change had already been communicated to the International Cricket Council and was welcomed by the world鈥檚 cricket governing body.
鈥榃e have had proper communication with the ICC and the one who has now become the president has himself worked there for a long time. There is no communication gap from our side. And the ICC has welcomed it [the decision to remove Faruque and bring in Bulbul],鈥� he said.
According to Asif, the National Sports Council, which nominates members to the Bangladesh Cricket Board, exercised its authority to withdraw Faruque鈥檚 nomination as a director. As a result, his presidency ended automatically under the BCB constitution.
鈥榃e did not remove him from the presidency. We only withdrew his nomination as director. The presidency fell automatically as a result, and Aminul Bhai was elected as per the BCB constitution,鈥� he said.
Asif revealed that a fact-finding committee had issued serious mismanagement in the recent BPL season. While the investigation found no evidence of corruption, it cited numerous administrative failures, including financial mismanagement that forced government鈥檚 intervention to cover unpaid salaries and expenses.
鈥榃e didn鈥檛 find any evidence of corruption, but the BPL report made it clear there were significant administrative failures. In such situations, the performance of the leadership must be assessed,鈥� he said.
Faruque鈥檚 dismissal followed a no-confidence motion from eight out of nine BCB directors nominated by the NSC, who reportedly struggled to work under his leadership.
鈥楲ike in cricket, you need a team to function. At BCB, there was no team. Directors were not comfortable working with him,鈥� said Asif.
鈥楾his is not about removing someone in disgrace. It鈥檚 about performance. Like a player gets dropped for repeated failures, administrators must also be assessed,鈥� he added,聽
The sports adviser further noted that Faruque had been given a chance to explain but could not offer a convincing defense.
