Points of Light: Commonwealth award conferred to Master Ayub

ISLAMABAD: For his voluntary work to educate the poorest of poor and improving the education and life chances of young people in Islamabad, Master Muhammad Ayub has been handed a Commonwealth award by England.

Queen Elizabeth-II, the head of the Commonwealth, recognised Ayub as the fifty-fourth Commonwealth ‘Point of Light’.

In a statement on the award issued by the British High Commission on Wednesday, the Queen thanked inspirational volunteers across the 53 Commonwealth nations for the difference they were making in their communities and beyond, by recognising one volunteer from each Commonwealth country each week in the two years following the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting which was held in London earlier this year.



The awards aim to celebrate inspirational acts of volunteering across the commonwealth by sharing stories of these award-winners and to help inspire others to make their own contribution to tackling some of the greatest social challenges present today.

Ayub, a fireman with the CDA, runs an open-air school at a public park in Sector F-6 for children who would not otherwise be able to afford an education. He first started teaching a group of four children in the park over 30 years ago. The school roll has since grown to over 250 students, with lessons running free of charge from noon to sunset.

Children are taught a range of subjects including Urdu, English and Maths and thousands of children have taken government accredited exams allowing them to go on to higher education, or secure higher-paid jobs.



“This is a moment of utmost happiness for me and these children who sit on the ground and study,” Ayub remarked at being handed the award.

“Knowledge is power and I wish I have several such schools all over Pakistan, where I can teach kids free of cost. This school is for every Pakistani whether he is a Muslim, Hindu, Christian or from any other religion, caste or creed.”

Published in The Express Tribune, May 31^st, 2018.