Many hats: Education directorate directionless

Senate body reprimands officials over lack of timely appointments and teachers’ absenteeism.

ISLAMABAD:

A parliamentary panel has reprimanded the officials of a federal body created in the aftermath of the 18th Amendment for failing to find its feet as yet, The Express Tribune has learnt.

The Senate Standing Committee on Capital Administration and Development Division (CADD) criticised it for letting as many as 13 of its officers hold charge of more than one post at the Federal Directorate of Education (FDE). Besides, it took strong notice of absenteeism of teachers in the educational institutes.

Among others the posts of director and assistant director of model colleges, director general National Institute of Science and Technical Education (NISTE) have been vacant for some time now. And officers from other departments were looking after the affairs as additional charge badly affecting work in those departments.

The committee chairperson Senator Kalsoom Perveen asked CADD Secretary Faridullah Khan to explain the delay in the appointment of permanent staff who could not come up with a satisfactory answer.

On the appointment of NISTE director general, the secretary said the post has been referred to the Federal Public Service Commission for permanent recruitment. “But to run the affairs smoothly the joint secretary is looking into its affairs.”

The CADD Director simultaneously looks after the affairs of Federal Directorate of Education (FDE) but we were facing problems there, the secretary said.

“Many financial mismanagement issues surfaced in the past. Besides there were many complaints about postings and transfers of teachers and officers,” he said. To streamline the affairs, Haji Akbar Chheena was appointed on deputation for a period of three years.

The chairperson ordered that all officers holding dual charges be immediately replaced with permanent staff.

The secretary in his presentation said that teacher to student ratio in Islamabad Capital Territory’s public institutions was one to 20.

“The ratio is surprisingly at par with the US and UK but on ground it is different,” said Senator Sughra Hussain Imam. Imam said that just a random visit to any school will tell that teachers remain absent at many of the public schools.

“The mushroom growth of private education institutes was due to the failure of public sector schools,” she commented.

The secretary said a mechanism was being devised to address the loopholes in the system. CADD Joint Secretary Rafique Tahir said evening shift will be abolished from March next year and students will be shifted to nearby model colleges.

The chairperson expressed dissatisfaction over the performance, and statistics presented before the committee and ordered CADD officials to come up with comprehensive and correct data on number of educational institutions, staff and students in the capital.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 28^th, 2013.