Holding up salaries: Teacher accuses education dept of demanding bribes

Court seeks explanation for why arrears have not been cleared.

KARACHI:

The Supreme Court took notice of the alleged demands for bribes by the Sindh education department officers for releasing salaries to the junior school teachers who have been working for the World Bank-funded education project without receiving payments for the last one year.

A two-member bench, comprising Justices Amir Hani Muslim and Ejaz Afzal Khan, was hearing the human rights complaint sent by a junior school teacher, Munir Ahmed Chandio, to the Supreme Court’s Human Rights Compliant Cell.

In his application, Chandio said the Sindh government had launched a World Bank-funded project that aims to promote education in the far flung rural parts of the province. Around 132 teachers were appointed through tests conducted by the University of Sindh, Jamshoro.

He alleged that the Qambar-Shahdadkot District Coordination Officer was issuing monthly salaries to only those people who paid bribe to him. “At least 17 teachers, who did not give in to the demands of the officers in the DCO Office, have not been paid for the last twelve months,” Chandio told the judges.

He informed them that these 17 teachers have continued to work without pay. “The education department owes Rs500,000 to each teacher as their 12-month salary,” the complainant said, pleading to the court to take appropriate order against those responsible.

An officer from the provincial education department told the court that the payment of salaries has been streamlined since the last three months, but arrears were yet to be cleared. He said that the Auditor General’s Office was concerned with the clearing arrears. This comment irked the judges who summoned the Auditor General Sindh to explain why arrears had not been cleared after one year. Hearing was adjourned till the next session.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 10^th, 2013.