‘Taxes, expenses responsible for fee increase’

Association chairperson says only 15% of schools fail to follow rules

KARACHI: As the government reprimanded the private schools for the arbitrary increase in fees, the association of private schools shared their greivances with the government.

All commercial taxes imposed on the schools should be immediately withdrawn, said All Private Schools Management Association, Sindh, chairperson Syed Khalid Shah. While the association never questions the education department's actions against schools on the fee raise issue, he felt that educational institutions have recurring expenses as well.

He was addressing a press conference on Friday following the protest of some parents whose children studied at The Generation School. They had protested on Thursday against the increase in school fee.

Shah talked about the problems faced by the private schools in an attempt to clarify the reason behind the raise. "There are about 15 per cent schools, which do not follow the rules and regulations and create problems for the rest, which are charging nominal amount for tuition fee," he claimed. Shah also clarified that the association is against this practice of schools raising fee on their own as it depicts schools' association as a 'mafia'.

According to him, reporting in such issues should be fair otherwise it portrays a negative image of the school and the education system.

Shah also pointed out that the association never defends those schools against which the education department takes action on the issue of fee raises. However, he justified the private schools' decision of fee increase by pointing out the hefty taxes and expenses that the institutions have to pay. "All commercial taxes, which are implemented on private educational institutes, should be taken back immediately," said Shah.

Govt's permission required

Meanwhile, commissioner Shoaib Ahmed Siddiqui has said that imposition of taxes cannot be accepted as a reason to justify the hike in tuition fees. Chairing a meeting with education department private schools director-general Mansoob Ali Siddiqui and representatives of private schools' management and other relevant officials on Thursday evening, he said that any arbitrary decision by any school's management is not justifiable.

"As per rules and regulations, the government's permission has to be ensured prior to any raise," he said, adding that the government or the administration, too, can only consider any such propositions after taking on board all the relevant stakeholders, mainly parents.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 12^th, 2015.