Tainted officer on education boards' chairmen search committee

Presence of person found responsible for result tampering makes hiring process questionable

KARACHI:

A report by the Chief Minister's Inspection, Inquiries, and Implemen-tation Team Department (CMIE & ITD) has raised serious concerns about the integrity and credibility of the search committee responsible for appointing chairpersons to education boards across the province.

The committee had conducted interviews and submitted a list of recommended candidates for chairmanship positions in seven education boards, which were subsequently approved by the chief minister. Following the approval, appointments were made accordingly.

However, the credibility of the selection process has come under scrutiny after the same investigation committee — in a separate inquiry into irregularities at the Hyderabad Education Board — found Dr Muhammad Memon, a key member of the search committee and former chairman of the Hyderabad Board, responsible for result tampering.

The committee has recommended that an FIR be registered against Dr Memon, along with other officials, for manipulating examination results and computer records.

The situation has now created a paradox: while Dr Memon is being held accountable for alleged malpractice, appointments to other boards are being made based on his recommendations. This contradiction has cast a shadow over the legitimacy of the search committee and raised critical questions about whether the appointments were made on merit or influenced by compromised processes.

The Sindh Department of Universities and Boards, which forwarded the initial summary of recommended appointments to the chief minister and later issued the official notifications, has now begun implementing the investigation committee's recommendations.

Speaking to The Express Tribune, Dr Memon expressed shock and dismay over the developments. "When I was contacted by the committee, I was shown supposed evidence of tampering, but I was never formally met by the full panel- only one individual introduced himself as part of the committee," he claimed.