Pak Senate committee summons Butt on Aug. 19
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Pakistan senate standing committee on privileges motion has summoned the PCB chairman Ejaz Butt on Thursday to respond to charges that he maligned and questioned the credibility of some of its members on sports.
Senator Tahir Mashadi, who heads the privileges committee, said that Butt would be given a fair chance to defend himself.
"He will be questioned on why he tried to malign and question the credibility of some senators in the media," Mashadi said.
"If he able to prove that he didn't breach the privileges of Senators fine but if he can't do this then he will be censured, a recommendation will be sent to the President and Prime Minister to remove him immediately and we will also move a privilege motion against him in the Senate," he explained.
Mashadi pointed out this was not the first time Butt was facing such charges and last year also some Senators had moved a privilege motion against him but the matter was then brushed under the carpet.
"This time the charges against Butt are more serious plus it is a fact that the Senate standing committee on sports is concerned with the state of cricket affairs and also the poor performances of the team in England," he said.
Butt had said in a media statement earlier this year that some Senators were trying to pressurise him and the board into clearing payments of the contractor who built an enclosure at the Gaddafi stadium but whose final claims for payment were disputed by the board.
Under fire for his administrative skills and reports of his interference in selection matters as well for his frequent trips abroad, Butt also made some strong remarks on concerns voiced by some Senators after a meeting with PCB officials that some players might be involved in match-fixing.
Butt's tenure as PCB chairman ends in October and many critics and insiders believe the chief patron of the board, President Asif Zardari will not give him an extension and will finally go for changes in the cricket set-up.
The standing committee of the National Assembly on sports has already sent a letter to President Zardari urging him to sack Butt and appoint an ad-hoc committee to run cricket affairs for an interim period.
The NA committee has accused Butt of damaging Pakistan cricket by refusing to include senior players like Younus Khan in the team over petty and ego issues.
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