By Quentin Langley
Pakistan is facing one of the worst natural disasters in history. The numbers affected exceed those hit by the Haiti earthquake, the Indian Ocean tsunami and the 2005 Kashmir earthquake combined. The Pakistani government is engaged in desperate appeals for government to government aid. The major charities are throwing themselves into huge fund-raising efforts.
Even before today's (29 August) cricket scandal some people were hesitant about giving money. Some Pakistani expatriates in the UK have expressed reluctance to send money to Pakistan, fearing that the money would be wasted or stolen. Today's cricket scandal is a disaster in terms of Pakistani branding.
Cricket is not just a sport for Pakistan. It is almost the only field of endeavour in which the country is genuinely world class. At just the time when Pakistan needs the confidence of the world to raise money for the flooding disaster, the country has been brandjacked by a betting scandal.
At the time of writing, no Pakistani player has been arrested. However, a middleman does seem to have been arrested, and it is difficult to see how he can have entered into a conspiracy with anyone other than team players.
To put it bluntly, these criminal allegations will impact donations to the disaster appeal. Pakistan will not only lose a cricket match, millions will die from this scandal.
Brandjack News 