Fresh elections in January 2012:

New SLC Interim Committee for six months

Dinesh WEERAWANSA

Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) will get a new interim administration from today. Sports Minister Mahindananda Aluthgamage is expected to make the announcement today to appoint a fresh five-member interim committee. None of the previous interim committee members would be included in the new committee.

However, the new interim administration will be appointed only for a six-month period and Minister Aluthgamage has decided to hold fresh elections to the SLC by January next year.

President Mahinda Rajapaksa has stressed the need to reinstate democracy at SLC so that member clubs, affiliated bodies and associations of the country’s national cricket governing body could appoint officials of their choice.

The President has instructed the Sports Minister to make arrangements to conduct an annual general meeting (AGM) once the six-month period of the new SLC interim committee ends by December 31.

Unlike the previous interim committees of the SLC, the new interim administration will be appointed for a specific period - six months, in order to set conducive environment to conduct fresh elections at an AGM and appoint an executive committee. The fresh SLC elections, scheduled for January 2012 will be conducted by the Ministry of Sports under the patronage of Director General of Sports.

After the six-month period of the new SLC Interim Committee ends in December, the SLC will announce fresh elections and invite the member clubs for the 2012 AGM.

All clubs, associations and affiliated bodies currently registered with the SLC would be eligible to vote and would be invited for the AGM. The previous SLC interim committee, headed by former Sri Lanka leg spinner D.S. de Silva resigned yesterday to pave way for a new administration.

De Silva has informed that their task has been accomplished after the successful completion of the 2011 ICC World Cup.

De Silva steps down after running the SLC for over two years since April, 2009. Beside De Silva, the other members of his outgoing SLC Interim Committee were Nishantha Ranatunga (Secretary), Sujeewa Rajapakse (Treasurer), Eshan de Silva, Asanga Seneviratne and Sarinda Unamboowe.

Sri Lanka Cricket has been run by successive interim committees since the 1999 World Cup debacle, except for a short period during which parliamentarian Thilanga Sumathipala and Mohan de Silva were holding the top seat.