Back to school: Private schools slam govt’s decision to extend school vacations

The association suggests that only the schools in areas with rains and floods should remain closed

KARACHI: The ongoing rift between the education secretary and the Private Schools Management Association (PSMA) could not be resolved as PSMA insisted to reopen schools on August 3.

Addressing a press conference on Saturday, PSMA chairperson Sharafuz Zaman said, "I do not understand why the education secretary is threatening us with a fine and an FIR and warning us to agree with the extension of summer vacations."

Zaman added, "We are again announcing that all schools will reopen from August 3, however we are also ready to sit and talk regarding this issue with the education secretary."

PSMA chairperson said that the education secretary should have taken them into confidence before taking the decision to extend summer vacations. He said, "We are ready to meet and negotiate over this issue with Pechuho before August 3." Zaman questioned the education secretary about what he will do if the city experiences more rains after August 11.

All Private Schools Management Sindh (APSMAS) chairman Syed Khalid Shah said, "Pechuho should tell us if there really is a genuine reason behind the extension of summer vacations." The Public Private Management Association chairperson Haider Ali suggested that only the schools in areas with rains and floods should remain closed while the rest should be exempted from these orders. "None of the slum areas in Karachi have stagnant water which is why schools can easily reopen on time," he claimed.

Haider also said that they were only following the decisions made in the steering committee's meeting held on February 12. "If the decision to extend vacations is forcefully implemented on us, we will shut down schools on August 14 as a protest," he announced.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 2^nd, 2015.