Merit-based appointments of varsities’ heads demanded
Process should be transparent, says Working Group on Higher Education Reforms
They also resolved to monitor all key appointments in higher education and to send their recommendations to the government related to appointment and governance of higher education. PHOTO:FILE
ISLAMABAD:
Reacting over the longstanding issue of ad-hocism and no-merit based appointments at top slots in federally chartered universities and victimisation of the faculty, the Working Group on Higher Education Reforms has demanded immediate appointment of vice chancellors in Quaid-i-Azam University (QAU), Allama Iqbal Open University (AIOU) and rectors in Comsats University Islamabad (CUI) and International Islamic University Islamabad (IIUI). They also demanded an end to victimisation of faculty especially the whistle-blowers by the ‘autocratic’ administration of the varsities.
HEC chief presents blueprints for varsities
The working group comprising senior academics, higher education experts and elected officebearers of Federation of All Pakistan Universities Academic Staff Association (FAPUASA) during a meeting held at QAU Islamabad, showed their dismay over the ad-hocism and demanded to form a search committee comprising eminent scholars with clean background.
They recommended that the search process should be open and transparent, where the credentials and marking of each candidate must be made public by placing those on website, the previously adopted closed and secret process resulted in appointments of incompetent persons at top slots in higher education sector.
They demanded a fair and unbiased audit of all previous VCs appointments. They also demanded to advertise the vacant positions well before the end of tenures.
HEC recognises only 4 of 9 varsities PTI claims it built in K-P
The interim setup should perform only day to day affairs. They said the meeting of the syndicate by the complete interim setup of CUI is illegal and chancellor should take notice of not only illegalities but also victimisation of faculty and stoppage of their salaries by the interim rector CUI.
While appreciating the vision of transparency, merit based appointments and accountability of ‘Naya Pakistan’, they resolved an end to victimization of the faculty members on whistle-blowing.
They said the recent sacking of two faculty members of International Islamic University Islamabad on exposing the irregularities, malpractices and illegal award of degree to the son of President IIUI is highly condemnable and is a sheer violation of the promise of Prime Minister Imran khan to not only protect the whistle-blowers but to also award him 25% of the recovered amount. If victimization of whistle-blowers is not stopped, no one will bell the cat in future leading towards ‘Naya Pakistan’ quite like the old one, they added. They hoped that newly elected President of Pakistan, being chancellor of federal universities, would take notice of irregularities and violations at the universities.
They also resolved to monitor all key appointments in higher education and to send their recommendations to the government related to appointment and governance of higher education.
Published in The Express Tribune, September 6th, 2018.
Reacting over the longstanding issue of ad-hocism and no-merit based appointments at top slots in federally chartered universities and victimisation of the faculty, the Working Group on Higher Education Reforms has demanded immediate appointment of vice chancellors in Quaid-i-Azam University (QAU), Allama Iqbal Open University (AIOU) and rectors in Comsats University Islamabad (CUI) and International Islamic University Islamabad (IIUI). They also demanded an end to victimisation of faculty especially the whistle-blowers by the ‘autocratic’ administration of the varsities.
HEC chief presents blueprints for varsities
The working group comprising senior academics, higher education experts and elected officebearers of Federation of All Pakistan Universities Academic Staff Association (FAPUASA) during a meeting held at QAU Islamabad, showed their dismay over the ad-hocism and demanded to form a search committee comprising eminent scholars with clean background.
They recommended that the search process should be open and transparent, where the credentials and marking of each candidate must be made public by placing those on website, the previously adopted closed and secret process resulted in appointments of incompetent persons at top slots in higher education sector.
They demanded a fair and unbiased audit of all previous VCs appointments. They also demanded to advertise the vacant positions well before the end of tenures.
HEC recognises only 4 of 9 varsities PTI claims it built in K-P
The interim setup should perform only day to day affairs. They said the meeting of the syndicate by the complete interim setup of CUI is illegal and chancellor should take notice of not only illegalities but also victimisation of faculty and stoppage of their salaries by the interim rector CUI.
While appreciating the vision of transparency, merit based appointments and accountability of ‘Naya Pakistan’, they resolved an end to victimization of the faculty members on whistle-blowing.
They said the recent sacking of two faculty members of International Islamic University Islamabad on exposing the irregularities, malpractices and illegal award of degree to the son of President IIUI is highly condemnable and is a sheer violation of the promise of Prime Minister Imran khan to not only protect the whistle-blowers but to also award him 25% of the recovered amount. If victimization of whistle-blowers is not stopped, no one will bell the cat in future leading towards ‘Naya Pakistan’ quite like the old one, they added. They hoped that newly elected President of Pakistan, being chancellor of federal universities, would take notice of irregularities and violations at the universities.
They also resolved to monitor all key appointments in higher education and to send their recommendations to the government related to appointment and governance of higher education.
Published in The Express Tribune, September 6th, 2018.