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HYDERABAD, April 12: Sindh University Teachers Association (SUTA) started a movement aimed at bringing about structural changes for better academic environment at the campus. From the very beginning our movement received criticism from some well-known persons on the basis of their personal grudge/conflicts with some teachers. Initially, they used to criticize the movement on the pretext of suspension of academic activities and baseless allegations aimed at character assassination of the teachers and hence demoralization of the movement. Despite the fact that we informed them about the compensation plan, they continued their propaganda. Now that the movement has achieved some initial results and entered into a new phase where we are continuing the struggle in parallel with conducting the academic activities these persons have again started to malign our struggle on the basis of baseless allegations spread by the cohorts of Nazir Mughul. Please remember that nearly three months have passed but Nazir Mughul is still on forced leave and trying to use these tactics through such persons to create an environment for his return.
One piece of misinformation spread by Mr Inam Shaikh through his post on Facebook which got widely circulated needs to be clarified. Mr Shaikh writes that:
"DROP SCENE OF THE TEACHERS STRUGGLE IN SINDH UNIVERSITY: in initial episode posts of registrar, director student affairs, dean student affairs, provost, chairman colony given to teachers. in continuation of it, controller and other posts will also be given to them. one women suta office bearer is striving hard to become director women studies, other has been told that her bogus dptt will not be merged into another functional one. Badar Soomro assured Rs. 6 million spent on his tour in England in the name pf ph.D will not b recovered from him......JAHAN KHAY DYO MUBARKOON ASEEN PYA KAHEENDA ACHOON".
Please note that the Acting VC Sindh University has replaced Registrar on her own. The post of Director Student Affairs was lying vacant owing to murder of Prof Channar and was filled by SU administration on their own. The provost and Chairman Colony are still same as they were in the time of Mughul. Therefore, all that is said by Mr Shaikh is totally incorrect. SUTA has nothing to do with any post. As a matter of fact SUTA had openly declared its policy that each administrative post including the post of Registrar must be advertised and meritorious persons be appointed through appropriate procedure. This demand was accepted by the Acting VC but is yet to be implemented. Mr Shaikh can't provide any supporting information to defend his allegation. He is an outsider and is being used by some cronies of Nazir Mughul including the present interim administrative setup at SU who are at war with SUTA. Therefore, acknowledging his mistake of defaming SUTA and the teaching community Mr Shaikh owes to extend a public apology.
It was Mr Shaikh's baseless allegation that provided ground to yet another arrogant person Mr Zulfiqar Halepoto who not only demeaned the teachers struggle but the whole community, society and Sindhi nation. He went on to write that:
"It is very shameful that a group of so-called 'REVOLUTIONARY' teachers were high-jacking teachers community and despite the fact that nation was knowing their caliber and status and level of greed, some of our hypo-crate civil society leaders and DANISHWARS were supporting their PETTY INTERESTS GAME. What a shame and what a pity."
It must be remembered that except from Sindh University teachers, this movement is supported by all the public sector Universities of Sindh and Pakistan and all the parties from federal to nationalists and religious to left ones. The vibrant civil society organization like PILER, AURAT foundation, HRCP, WAF, Fisher Folk, ISM, Pirbhat and more across Pakistan supported our struggle. Persons like Saaiin Ibrahim Joyo, Rassool Bux Palejo, Dr Qadir Magsi, (late) Bashir Khan Quershi, Gul Muhammad Umrani, Hassan Mujtaba, Atiya Daood, Dastagir Bhatti and many others have publicly supported this movement and encouraged the teachers to continue this struggle for the betterment of higher education and even extend it to work for the betterment of the secondary and primary education in Sindh.
Now according to Mr Halepoto all of these parties, organizations and persons are hypocrites and that the struggle of teachers is nothing but 'petty interests game'. I have no words to say anything about Mr Halepoto and I leave this matter to you to decide.
We have achieved some of our goals in a way that a bridge between teachers, employees, students and civil society has started building during this movement which is helpful for maintaining peace at the campus and bringing about democratic reforms needed in the governance of our institutes. We made society to realize the state of universities of Sindh where corruption, maladministration, nepotism and many such things are destroying our institutions due to bureaucratic, autocratic and authoritarian style of governance. Institutes of higher education around the world are run with shared and participatory governance based on mutual cooperation of all stake holders. This needs to be changed. We have just started and it is long struggle which need consistency and commitment of all stake holders of society, including some individual who always played the role of spectator.
Office bearers of SUTA are continuously holding two hour token sit-in daily in front of Administration Building (AC-II) along with office bearers of Sindh University Employees Welfare Association (SEWA) to press for the implementation of our demands. No one has yet turned to join this protest though we were assured by so many quarters that once you start academic activities we all will be with you. We just wonder where those people have gone! Nearly three and half months have passed still we don't have a permanent VC, still we don't have proper security measures, student unions and we don't know any things regarding the investigation and arrest of the killers of teacher and students. Problems are getting replicated at other Universities of Sindh where teachers are being removed only because they are raising voice against illegal appointment of VCs.
In this regard, we have arranged a follow-up dialogue entitled 'Dilemma of Higher Education in Sindh' which will be held on Monday, April 16 at 3:00PM at Allama I.I Kazi Hall, SU Old Campus, Hyderabad. Allama I.I Kazi was the founder of the University of Sindh and hence of the Higher Education in Sindh. Traditionally, every year, University of Sindh used to celebrate the first week of April as the 'Founders Week'. The interim administration forgot all of this but we the teachers are determined to trace and restart the journey of higher education from the Hall dedicated to I.I Kazi with a hope that his spiritual presence will guide the new generation of new Sindh to build new system of higher education and get rid of this establishment imposed status-quo once and for all. We invite all the stake holders to participate at this event for the sake of the future of Sindh.
Dr Azhar Ali Shah President Sindh University Teachers Association |
Tariq Khattak, Islamabad, Pakistan.
GSM = 0300-9599007 and 0333-9599007
Email: Tariqgulkhattak@gmail.com
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