PA paves the way to regularise more than 21,000 govt teachers

Thousands of government schoolteachers who hailed in the new year protesting for permanent jobs can breathe a sigh of relief as the Sindh Assembly has unanimously passed into law the Sindh Regularisation of Teachers Appointed on Contract Basis Bill-2018.

Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Nisar Ahmed Khuhro presented the bill on Monday in the house, which passed it, paving the way for the regularisation of 21,500 teachers who had been appointed on contract years ago through recruitment tests conducted by National Testing Service and the University of Sindh.

“Notwithstanding anything contained in the Act or rules made there under or any decree order or judgment of a court, but subject to other provisions of this Act, teachers appointed on contract basis and hold such appointment on the commencement of this Act, shall be deemed to have been validly appointed as teacher as a civil servant on regular basis with effect from the date of commencement of this Act,” Section 3 (1) of the bill stated.

It added that a teacher’s services shall not be regularised unless they have completed or completes three of years of their contract period or do not possess the qualification required for the post and their performance is not satisfactory.

The bill further adds that teachers regularised under the act shall not be transferred from the schools where they were appointed before the expiry of a period of five years for a male teacher and three for female. Thousands of teachers appointed on contract had held a protest sit-in for several weeks outside the Karachi Press Club earlier this year to demand regularisation of services.

College under occupation

Meanwile, the provincial government conceded in the house on Monday that the Government Commercial College in Khairpur was under the illegal occupation of influential people. The confession came from Education Minister Jam Mehtab Hussain Dahar on a call to attention notice moved by opposition lawmaker of the Pakistan Muslim League-Functional Nusrat Seher Abbasi.

The education minister said that it was the government’s obligation to end such an occupation and take action against the people involved. Moreover, Home Minister Sohail Anwar Khan Siyal said that directives had been issued by the provincial government to take immediate and strict action against people involved in selling narcotics and drugs outside schools and colleges.

The assurance from came from Siyal on a call to attention notice moved by opposition lawmaker of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Khurrum Sher Zaman on the issue of open sale of narcotics outside Karachi’s educational institutes.

Responding to another call to attention notice, Minister for Law Ziaul Hassan Lanjar said the provincial government was very much aware about its obligations to regularise katchi abadis (slums) in the province existing before 1999 and steps to this effect were being taken by the relevant authorities.

PTI’s Khurrum Sher Zaman moved an adjournment motion regarding alleged large-scale misappropriation in development funds meant for Larkana. However, Khuhro, the parliamentary affairs minister, opposed the motion stating that since the matter was subjudice in the Sindh High Court, the house could not discuss it.

The house chair then termed the adjournment motion out of order.

Voting for senators

Talking to journalists before the start of the session, Muttahid Qaumi Movement-Pakistan MPA Abdul Rauf Siddiqui said that the boycott of upcoming Senate elections was not an option for the lawmakers of his party. “Our lawmakers will vote wherever there is the kite symbol present,” he said.

According to him, there was no division of MQM-P’s vote bank, however, there could be differences among the party’s office-bearers.

The ongoing rift amomg leaders and another split in the party has left its MPAs dejected.

Out of the party’s 37 lawmakers, only four attended the assembly’s session on Friday, which was also the first session for eight Pak Sarzameen Party MPAs who had left their parent parties earlier to join the Mustafa Kamal-led PSP.