Fee increases: Parents should not protest outside schools, urges association

There is a proper channel for complaints, says APSMA chairman.

KARACHI:

Parents who protest outside their children’s schools are a security risk to the school administration as well as to the students, agreed the members of the All Private Schools Management Association at a meeting held earlier this week.

“Parents should be discouraged from demonstrating outside their child’s school,” said Syed Khalid Shah, who is the chairman of APSMA.

Referring to a recent protest by parents over school fee increases in Gulistan-e-Jauhar and FB Area, he said, “A new trend has started in which parents form a mob, enter the school and intimidate the school administration.”

A number of private schools located in the same belt condemned it too. “We are concerned about the safety of the schools and the students. Anyone—even a terrorist can become a part of the crowd—putting the lives of our children and teachers at stake.”

The chairman said that he was not siding with anyone, but it was high time to take notice of such issues. “Some private schools are at fault when it comes to raising fees or not providing quality education,” he admitted. “But there is a proper channel for parents to complain. They can either come to me, or approach the secretary of education—instead of protesting.”

He said that the parents embarrass the schools by bringing their children on to the streets in front of the media.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 15^th, 2012.