COMSATS in desperate search for rector

The COMSATS University Islamabad (CUI) is currently in the process of appointing a Rector after the premature resignation of Rector Muhammad Tabassum Afzal.

The university had already gone through a long period of interim and ad hoc setup prior to his appointment. However, as ad hoc positions for other staff positions such as the pro-rector, registrar and treasurer continued even under Rector Afzal’s tenure, to add to the existing administerial challenges, he unexpectedly handed in his resignation after serving three out of years of his term.

Due to this abrupt decision, all major offices of the university are again being run through ad hoc arrangements since the last year.

While a search committee has been appointed to seek an upstanding and competent candidate to serve as rector, the Academic Staff Association (ASA) of COMSATS has expressed its concerns over certain quarters with vested interests are trying to sabotage the fair, transparent and legal process of selection of a new rector.

The faculty and staff eagerly await the appointment of a new rector. The ASA has specifically demanded that the Ministry of Science and Technology (MoST) and the senate of CUI, which is headed by the President of Pakistan, complete the selection and appointment process of the rector within stipulated time and appoint a visionary professional with financial integrity to run the institution smoothly.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 29^th, 2024.