The beggar’s wound and the poultice to cure it for good
Have you ever heard of the beggar’s wound? As the saying goes, the wound never heals. May be, for the beggar, it’s a means to earn a living, but for others, it’s a discomforting sight, where you would rather cross the road and use the opposite pavement, just to get away from that gruesome sight.
This similitude may sound harsh but, it’s the stark truth. For the ICC, Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) is its beggar’s wound. Nearly a quarter-century ago in 1996, Sri Lanka pulled a rabbit out of the magician’s hat by winning the ICC World Cup, but since then, administratively it has not been ably managed to live upto that reputation.
Just prior to the World Cup win, Thilanga Sumathipala who is no stranger to Sri Lanka cricket, got himself embedded into the system and worked out a formula to stay in power and he believes he is there to stay. Yes, there is also a group of cricketers – Shammi Silva et al --who back Sumathipala, enabling him to stay afloat. But, there is also a another flock of mostly past cricketers who would swear that the Sumathipala presence has a ‘negative’ impact on Sri Lanka cricket. They have distanced themselves from the equation.
As for Sumathipala, the 'genie of Punchi Borella' taught the mantra of wooing the SLC votes, which, at any given opportunity, the SLC clan who call themselves ‘the stakeholders’, would say "aye" en-bloc. The ensuing result is a never ending battle between the "ayes" and "nays" for the custody of cricket. The "ayes vote Sumathipala in but, the "nays" work themselves through and get the "ayes" thrown out through some legal or administrative ruse, and get an Interim Committee (IC) set up, to tide through the troubled period. Yet, once again, everything is back to square one, when it comes to the turn of the "ayes".
However, when the last Interim Committee under Sidath Wettimuny took over the reins, they came out with a plan. They were of the opinion that Interim Committees per se, are a waste of time, and began working out a programme that would heal the beggar’s wound once and for all. While attending to the day-to-day nitty-gritties of cricket, the IC’s man with a legal background drafted a cricket constitution that would have brought the ‘gory’ period in cricket to an end. So much so, while having only 'Observer' status at the ICC -- another curse of the prevailing system – Sidath Wettimuny managed to convince the ICC they were in possession of a document that would heal the beggar’s wound. The ICC in turn, communicated to none other than the Prime Minister of the country that they were willing to set a grace period to enable the new constitution to come into force and become a legal document.
But, the good news was not to be. At this juncture, another pawn moved in higher circles, to ensure that the change of consti- tution would be none-starter, and Thilanga Sumathipala, with the help of former SLC chairman Jayantha Dharmadasa, wrested power at the SLC, and once again, the beggar’s wound began to fester.
History repeated itself. Once again the same old story unfolded. This time Sumathipala tried to act too smart. While trying to capture a second successive term, he encountered another legal wrangle that has spelled turmoil for Sri Lanka cricket. Nevertheless, last Wednesday, the court decided that SLC elections are the onus of the Ministry of Sports, and the ministry could work towards the elections through the road map drafted by the Attorney General's Department. But, the other case against Sumathipala which was filed in the same court is yet open.
Tired by the SLC's administrative conundrums, the ICC, too, has begun to act tough. Last Tuesday, it proclaimed, “The (ICC) Board agreed to allow a representative of the Sri Lanka Sports Minister to sit as an 'Observer' at the ICC Board and Full Council, but requested that elections for SLC are held within six months, failing which, SLC’s membership status would be reconsidered.”
At this juncture, let us welcome the third actor in this tale of woes. Present Sports Minister Faiszer Musthapha is very much a part of the story. Though he was pushed into this situation quite by chance, we feel he is enjoying the ‘spotlight’ he is generating at present. For Musthapha, who was kept out of competitive sports as a child, it is a huge achievement. Right now, he can rule the roost against any competitor in the ring.
Yet, in the present context, would the non-sporting Sports Minister have the bravado to take some correct decisions for cricket – the most successful sport in Sri Lanka by any yardstick?
Yes, he did get some eggs on his face, when he tried to woo in Sanga and clan to prop up his point of view. Very bitterly, he learned that, that play does not work anymore. The little niceties that were there – I mean the second golden opportunity – were kicked away by Thilanga Sumathipala, when he rejected the Aravinda-Sangakkara-Mahela proposals commissioned by the then Sports Minister Dayasiri Jayasekera.
Now, the cricketers who can still stand on their own two feet, have lost faith in the system, and it would be very difficult to woo them back.
If the minister acts according to the road map and have elections, Lanka's cricket would fall back into the same old pit and the beggar’s wound will be exposed once again. Through the prevailing system, the Sumathipala clan may win, and yet again, in the next available legal jolt, there would be another legal tangle and cricket administration will be in the dumps once again. May be, the ICC will come up with yet another ultimatum.
On Wednesday, several former heads of SLC, including World Cup- winning Captain Arjuna Ranatunga, Ana Punchihewa, Sidath Wettimuny and Jayantha Dharmadasa who opposes the way things are handled by the Sumathipala administration, met Minister Musthapha and explained that what they seek is also a change in the constitution.
We learn that the minister gave a patient hearing for around two hours. At that point, however, it was learned that the minister was not averse to a composition of personnel to get through this administrative impasse and even inquired about the names of some people who are eligible to hold office, keeping in mind the newly passed ineligibility clause which has been incorporated into the Sports Law. Then he also said that he hoped to meet a section of past players who are quite vocal about the prevailing situation and look to a plausible solution.
Then, on Thursday, Sumathipala and company wanted to meet the Minister to explain their side of the story, but at the last minute, they changed their minds.
Yet, through the grapevine, we also hear that the real problem lies elsewhere. What is needed here is a political intervention at the highest level. May be, the man at the top is not aware of what goes on at cricket’s citadel or, he just does not care or, does not have the time to heed trivial matters, yet, it is he who holds the key to the problem and, until it is done, there is no solution possible under the present circumstances. And the beggar’s wound will keep festering.