NAIROBI, Kenya, September 22, 2025 – Fed up with the circus and ruckus in Cricket Kenya (CK), former national team captain Aasif Karim has urged Sports Cabinet Secretary Salim Mvurya to dissolve the federation.
Karim has further advised the CS to form a caretaker committee, which he is ready to chair to restore normalcy in the sport.
“I would request him to dissolve the entire committee that is there right now…who have created a disrepute in the sport and form a caretaker committee. If the minister feels fine, I am ready to chair the caretaker committee and to be given the responsibility to appoint people who I believe will do justice and to be given clear terms of reference in the next six, 12 or 18 months as required,” Karim said.
The legend has promised to instill professionalism and transparency in Kenyan cricket if given the chance to steer the sport back to still waters.
“We will ensure and involve all the stakeholders that are required and bring in professionalism, transparency and bring Kenyan cricket back to the top where it belongs,” Karim added.
The former left-arm spinner lamented over the state of cricket, describing it as beyond dead and buried.
“I remember in 2014…I was interviewed then. What we are going through is nothing new…it is just different people but the chair is the same. Back then when I was interviewed (on ESPN), the headline was ‘former captain says Kenyan cricket is dead and buried’. Still it is buried and the way we are going, I don’t know if there is another word for it…maybe cremation,” Karim said.
Vicious boardroom war
The former skipper’s comment come against the backdrop of a tug-of-war between two factions of Cricket Kenya, which have virtually brought everything to a standstill.
The tussle pits the chair Manoj Patel on one side — backed up by the federation’s council — as well as chief executive officer Ronald Bukusi on the other side — with the support of the majority of the board members.
While acknowledging that differences of opinion do occur, Karim nonetheless criticised both parties for airing their dirty linen in public.
“Like in any governance structure, there will be different points of view…there is nothing wrong with that. But, this should be done in a civil manner…in a boardroom where you thrash out the issues and then come out with one voice. A lot of people are looking up to you; young cricketers who are suffering because of this politics…if I may call it that,” the former lower-order batsman pointed out.
Whereas the issues seem to have been bubbling below the surface for some time, the war has gone full blown with last month’s launch of a T20 league that is to be sponsored by Dubai-based Arena of Sports (AOS).
The launch, attended by acting treasurer Kennedy Obuya — who has sided with Patel — was soon after disowned by Bukusi who said AOS had reneged on an earlier contract with the federation.
A week later, the federation’s council — calling itself the Supreme Council — called on the chair to immediately suspend Bukusi for gross insubordination to which Patel obliged in writing.
However, the rest of the board members dismissed the suspension, reiterating that the tournament has not been sanctioned by CK, while noting that Patel was suspended as chair in June this year.
Since then, it has been a case of verbal sparring with both sides arguing their case in the court of public opinion.
Lending his point of view to the controversy surrounding the tournament, Karim opined that the fight is all about money.
“What is so difficult when you have a professional CEO there…a board that has been elected but you cannot agree on this issue. There is a huge question on how this thing is being done and obviously the bottom line is money,” he said.
Karim added: “The money is being put in because there are two different groups of people who are thinking differently. Whether they are thinking rightly or for their own interest, that’s the big question mark.”
He also cast doubts as to why AOS would be interested in sponsoring a tournament in a country like Kenya where cricket has been dead and buried for quite some time.
“This is an opportunity that some people from various parts of the world have seen Kenya as a weak spot of how they can come in the pretext of putting in money. As you know, some of these things have a lot of question marks. If the money is legit and has been in the correct way, then procedures are there on how it has to be done. It’s not rocket science on how this needs to be done…there is the constitution and governance on how this needs to be done,” he noted.
The legend added: “The board…I am sure…were looking at how they can generate income because right now, the only source of income…maybe 90 plus percent is from ICC (International Cricket Council). You’ve got people on the board who are earning an excellent salary and cannot deliver anything.”
Old wounds reopened
Karim was front and centre in Kenya’s best years as a cricket playing nation.
He wore the armband as Kenya competed at the 1996 (co-hosted by India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka) and 1999 World Cup (co-hosted by England, Wales, Scotland, Ireland and the Netherlands.
Having earlier hang up his bat, he returned to the national set-up in 2003 for the World Cup, which Kenya co-hosted with South Africa and Zimbabwe.
Kenya went on to make history as the first non-Test playing nation to reach the semis of the competition.
Karim particularly starred in the Super Sixes of the competition against Australia where he took three wickets for seven runs in 8.2 overs, which earned him a man-of-the-match award.
Looking back to how far Kenyan cricket has come, he believes the illnesses bedevilling the sport are chronic and not acute.
“Where we are today is not because of the recent times. It is a historical issue. Either we have the right people in the wrong place or the wrong people in the right place. For, governance and competency is non-negotiable. Just because I have played cricket before, does it mean I have the leadership qualities to run an organisation?” he posed.
Karim also faulted the normalisation committee, formed in 2022 by then Sports Cabinet Secretary Amina Mohammed, for not doing enough the cure the issues affecting the sport.
“We had a good opportunity to revive, revamp and restore Kenyan cricket. How do you appoint a normalisation committee that has no cricketer in it? The only they did was to ask us to give our views and most of it was discarded like paper,” he said.
Karim is set to meet Sports Principal Secretary Elijah Mwangi on Tuesday where he is expected to discuss the way forward out of the maze of confusion that is Cricket Kenya.
