PCB to conduct anti-corruption drive

Cricket board to start anti-corruption awareness programme for regional teams,

LAHORE: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) will start an anti-corruption awareness programme for regional teams on the directives of the International Cricket Council (ICC).

The anti-corruption awareness programme seeks to step up efforts to counter the spot-fixing menace that has hammered the national team.

"The anti-corruption awareness programme is meant to familiarise regions with the new domestic anti-corruption code being implemented by the PCB," the cricket board announced.

The PCB said the latest awareness programme, to be conducted from December 10 to 22 is another step to curb the spot-fixing menace.

PCB security manager Waseem Ahmed will conduct the programme at various venues, to include lectures and videos, it said.

Peshawar’s team will participate in the programme on Friday at Qaddaffi Stadium in Lahore while Abbottabad and Hyderabad regional teams will participate in the programme on December 12.

Lectures will be given to Quetta and Kahuta Research Laboratory teams on December 20 in Rawalpindi and to the Pakistan Internatonal Airlines (PIA) team on December 22 in Faisalabad.

Three Pakistani cricketers, Salman Butt, Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Aamer, are provisionally suspended by the ICC on charges of spot-fixing during team's Lord's Test against England in August.

Four other players, Kamran Akmal, Imran Farhat, Umar Akmal and Wahab Riaz, have been accused by alleged bookmaker Mazhar Majeed of involvement in fixing.

In October, the ICC advised Pakistan to take strict measures to curb corruption among its players and its cricket, otherwise threatening sanctions.

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has already introduced a stricter code of conduct for all the national team players and implemented steps to educate the players on corruption and doping.