Polling duties: FDE staff demand better remuneration, transport for election day

Say women staff should be relieved on election day by eight in the night

ISLAMABAD: Around 5,900 teaching and non-teaching staff from different educational institutions under Federal Directorate of Education (FDE) after receiving training to perform election duties demanded of the authorities concerned to enhance remuneration and ensure better transport arrangements and placement in the colleges in their respective areas.

According to an official source in FDE, around 5,900 teaching and non-teaching staff was sent to Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) by the directorate for getting two-day training to perform duties at polling stations in different schools and colleges of federal capital.

Professor Shahid Chaudhry, Lecturer at Sector H-9 College and Press Secretary of Federal Professors and Lecturers Association (FPLA) said the teaching and non-teaching staff has spent their two days in election training and they have to rush to the ECP before the day of election also for collection of election material.

Prof Chaudhry who will perform election duty as presiding officer said, the presiding and assistant presiding officers will have to stay on duty till submission of results to ECP on polling day while standing in huge lines.

“The remuneration to be given to the teachers for this four-day exercise is Rs6,000 for presiding officer, Rs4,500 for assistant presiding officer and Rs3,500 for polling officer which is even lesser than the TA/DA we get for any special duty and must be enhanced,” he said.

"We have demanded of the authorities concerned to assign duty of polling officer to female teaching staff so that they can go home at least by 8:00pm on election day," he said.

Another professor who is also performing election duty termed inclusion of retired professors' names in the list for election duties prepared by FDE is ridiculous and said: "This is the height of mismanagement and FDE has not done proper homework this time".

He said: "My wife is also professor and we are assigned election duty at the same time which is against the rules. Who will take care of our two daughters, if we both are out of home?"

He said that he had to use personal contacts to get his wife exempted from election duty. "I have somehow managed to exempt my wife from election duty due to my personal PR in the directorate, but what about the others,” he said.

The teachers' especially women are also facing issues regarding their placement at polling stations far from their residence. Those who come from Bhara Kahu and other distant areas to Islamabad will have to perform duty till night and are concerned about their return to home and availability of transport.

A female teacher living in Humak, Model Town, said: "I have to rush to a college in Islamabad to perform election duty which is near to the college where I am employed".

She said: "It will be difficult for me to manage election duty till late hours as my maid only stays with my children at home till 5pm. I am also worried, if I will be provided with some transport to rush to home at that time or not."  

Published in The Express Tribune, July 17^th, 2018.