No to oversight: Private Schools’ Association reject PPEI Ordinance

The ordinance gives government powers to regulate tuition fee and other fees charged by private schools

FAISALABAD:

The Private Schools Association (PSA) has rejected the Punjab Private Education Institutions Ordinance 2015, which accords the provincial government powers to regulate the tuition fee and other fees charged by private schools.  

Addressing a press conference on Thursday, members of the PSA’s joint action committee Rana Tahir Saleem, Sadaqat Hussain Lodhi, Shaikh Muhammad Akram and Khalid Hayat Kamoka said that the government had announced the PPEI Ordinance 2015 to victimise private educational institutions.

“We reject this ordinance. We do not agree with the government’s reasoning. Under the ordinance, the admission fee would be equal to a month’s tuition fee and institutions would not be able to charge any amount under the miscellaneous’ head.”

They said according to the PPEI Ordinance, private institutions could only increase the tuition fee by 5 per cent per annum and the procedure for increase of fee is unnecessarily complicated.

The speakers criticised the PPEI Ordinance 2015 and said that the law had prescribed severe punishments for teachers and the managements of private schools, “as if we were beastly creatures who were corrupting future generations rather than educating them.”

The speakers said 60 per cent of the private schools in the province charged between Rs300 and Rs1,000 per month and 25 per cent schools charged fees between Rs1,000 and Rs2,000 per month.

Only one per cent schools charge Rs10,000 or more per month. “Why are the rest of the schools being punished for the excesses of one per cent of the private schools in the province.”

The speakers said there were several public colleges including: Divisional Model College, Divisional Public College and Sandal College which charged thousands of rupees tuition fee per month under various heads including admission fee, building funds, stationary fund, computer lab charges, sports funds, late fee fine and re-admission charges.

“Why is action being taken only against private schools?”

Published in The Express Tribune, November 27^th, 2015.