The great debate: Schools undecided on Sept 13 closure

Nationalist parties have called a strike to oppose the new LG ordinance.

KARACHI: The decision to keep educational institutions open on September 13 - the day picked for a strike  - will depend on the law and order situation and availability of transport, said the two associations for most private schools in Karachi.

Nationalist parties said that a strike should be observed on the date to oppose the new local government ordinance. The call was backed by a number of political parties, including Jamaat-e-Islami and Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf.

“It’s too early to ask [schools to remain closed]. We have to keep an eye on the availability of transport and fuel,” said the chairperson of the Private Schools Management Association, Sharafuz Zaman. “Being a non-partisan organisation, what we consider in all such instances is the security of our students.”

Syed Khalid Shah, the chairperson of All Private Schools Management Association, said that the strike is likely to be halfhearted since the key stakeholder in city’s politics, the Muttahida Qaumi Movement, had not backed it. “But in any case it is too early to decide anything before Wednesday evening,” he said.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 12^th, 2012.