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www.thenews.com.pk - Security Verification
Wednesday, September 01, 2010
By Murtaza Ali Shah
LONDON: The Sports Editor of the News of the World, who authorised the sting operation involving Pakistani cricketers allegedly involved in match-betting, has stated that there is no hidden agenda behind the exposure that has rocked the world of cricket especially Pakistan.
Paul McCarthy, the Rupert Murdoch-owned weekly tabloids Sports Editor, said in an interview with The News/Geo Television that his papers latest expose, led by its Pakistani origin investigative editor Mazhar Mahmood, has helped the sports open the lid on a multi-million pounds fraud syndicate for no other reason but to make the sports clean and professional.
McCarthy said that the evidence gained by the paper pointed to the cheating within the Pakistan team and it was lucky for the paper that the scandal unravelled in a way the paper was not expecting but there was no agenda against Pakistan or its players.
We wanted to prove, if we can, there is corruption within the world of sports and cricket. Its a story which has gone around the world. It has huge ramifications for the sport of cricket. People are shocked at the action of those players who have been found involved. There are people who feel let down and there is a sense of bewilderment, he said.
He revealed that the papers journalists have been investigating the tip-offs involving Pakistani cricket players since the beginning of this year. He said the weekly paper, which has broken the earth-shaking stories involving sports starts, celebrities and politicians in Britain, became suspicious after the Test match Pakistan played in Sydney which also led to an International Cricket Council (ICC) Investigation.
For the newspaper, it is apparent, that their investigative journalists didnt need to do much vigorous work to ensnare the Pakistani players agent Mazhar Majeed as the agent seemed desperate to grab every opportunity to make money here and there.
He said when Pakistan landed in England for their latest assignment, the News of the World focussed the attention on Mazhar Majeed after managing to infiltrate his network and winning his trust. The papers journalists posed as the loaded Far Eastern businessmen. As is usual tactic of the paper, its journalists go in with blank cheques, protocol, bling, flash and luxury. Money for such scoops is not an issue and they openly wave it at their targets.
Asked about his role in the operation which has literally rocked the cricket world, the sports editor said that he felt it was going to be big when the first of the two no balls were bowled on Thursday.
From then on it was a case of what happens on Friday and it was clear that as Majeed had told, things fell into place, he said, confirming that he took everything into perspective and got in touch with senior ICC officials on Saturday night.
But the paper alerted the Scotland Yard on Friday evening when no balls were bowled. The police, according to the sports editor, came to the News International headquarters early on Saturday morning to collect the evidence which included the video footage showing how the oral commitment of Mazhar Majeed matched the actions of players on the filed, the transcription of the footage and spoke to the journalists who were working on the story.
The police found the evidence compelling and they felt there was a case to answer, said Paul McCarthy of how after seeing the evidence the police arrested Mazhar Majeed, 35, and kept waiting for the players to finish the game and come off the filed.
He said that cricket authorities need to send out a clear signal that corruption had no place in sports. Should any of the players involved in the betting be banned, they should be banned for life. The message should go out that you cant ever manipulate the integrity of cricket. Life bans must mean life bans, he added.
AFP adds from Taunton: Three Pakistan players named in an alleged betting scam have been summoned from training in southwest England to meet top officials in London, team manager Yawar Saeed said Tuesday.
Test captain Salman Butt and bowlers Mohammad Aamir and Mohammad Asif have been called to a meeting with the PCB Chairman Ijaz Butt, and the Pakistan High Commissioner Wajid Shamsul Hassan today (Wednesday), he said.
The PCB said earlier it will not suspend the players named in the alleged betting scam, revealed in Britains News of The World on Sunday, until the police find proof of wrongdoing. However, there is media speculation that they will be dropped from the team for the rest of the tour.
