Faruque Ahmed, the newly appointed president of the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB), faces a daunting task as he navigates the tumultuous waters of the organisation. With the recent change in government, the BCB has been left rudderless, with many directors stepping back from their roles. The board is in dire need of restructuring, and several urgent matters demand immediate attention.
To manage all these tasks simultaneously, the new BCB president, Faruque Ahmed, would need to be like a knight in chess, capable of moving two and a half squares in one leap. Faruque is indeed moving in that manner. Fortunately, he has some directors supporting him during these challenging times.
According to the constitution, besides the president, there are 24 director positions in the BCB. At the request of the National Sports Council (NSC), one of the two NSC-nominated directors, Jalal Yunus, has resigned. Although the other, Ahmed Sajjadul Alam, did not resign, the NSC later removed him. After the fall of Sheikh Hasina's government, Nazmul Hasan went into exile, and the new NSC-nominated director, Faruque, was elected president. Nazmul Abedin also joined as a new director.
Despite this, there is a significant void in the BCB's board of directors. Leaders or those close to the Awami League have disappeared from the scene. Besides Nazmul Hasan, these include A J M Nasir, Sheikh Sohel, Nazib Ahmed, Shafiul Alam Chowdhury, Gazi Golam Mortaza, Ismail Haider Mallick, Naimur Rahman, Tanvir Ahmed, and Anwarul Islam. Another director, Manzur Kader, has been absent from BCB activities for a long time due to illness. Manzur Alam from Chittagong is also not seen. Additionally, two more directors, Enayet Hossain and Obaid Rashid Nizam, have been out of the country for a long time due to family reasons.
Among those remaining, Faruque is getting the support of whoever he needs. Their numbers are not many. Specifically, Mahbubul Anam, Akram Khan, Khaled Mahmud, Iftekhar Ahmed, Kazi Inam Ahmed, Fahim Sinha, Saiful Alam Chowdhury, and Salahuddin Chowdhury. Before becoming president, Faruque met with the sports advisor of the BCB delegation, and many of them were present at the board meeting.
How is Faruque managing everything after suddenly being thrust into this massive workload? The new BCB president said on Tuesday, "Regardless of the situation, there is a professional corporate structure in the BCB. We are working through them. CEO Nizam Uddin Chowdhury is there, and Shahriar Nafees is in cricket operations. If everyone does their job, it won't be much of a problem."
Since taking over the BCB on August 21, Faruque has already become known among his colleagues as an organised and straightforward president. He is prioritising urgent matters. With Sajjadul Alam absent, there is no chairman in the tournament committee, yet the national league is approaching. He is prioritising that while also considering changes to the BCB constitution. He is making decisions with everyone's input and trying to fill the gaps in the permanent committees by giving additional responsibilities to many.
One of the active directors of the BCB, Kazi Inam Ahmed, shared his experience of working with Faruque Ahmed over the past few days, "The board president regularly meets with us. Since many committees currently lack chairmen, he is taking everyone's opinions. He is giving everyone the opportunity to speak so that we can make the right decisions."
