ISLAMABAD: The Federal Directorate of Education (FDE) has terminated the service of around 300 lecturers and junior teachers who were working on daily wages in model colleges of Islamabad for the last 10 to 15 years.

Teachers’ biometric data, which was being used for their attendance to pay salaries through the Accountant General Pakistan Revenues has been deleted.

Education Secretary Waseem Ajmal Chaudhry told Dawn teachers had been reinstated and they would be allowed to rejoin on August 15.

A final decision would be made after giving them a chance to share their point of view.

Secretary claims teachers reinstated, will be given hearing opportunity

A daily wager teacher, requesting not to be quoted, said that on August 10, they had attended the school, marked their attendance through a biometric system, and took classes as per routine.

“We were informed by the principal that the FDE and ministry have terminated our services…we were not allowed to mark our attendance which is mandatory twice a day… In some colleges, teachers marked their attendance at the time of leaving but in the evening they got calls from colleges that they will not be allowed to enter the colleges on Friday…,” he said.

“It was not only shocking but embarrassing…that we were not allowed to enter the school. We also learnt that a day before their termination a meeting, headed by Director Colleges Aftab Tariq and attended by principals, was held in which it was informed that lectures and teachers who refused to sit the exam of the Federal Public Services Commission (FPSC) or failed to clear the exam will be terminated,” the teacher added.

“One of the principals argue how schools would be run without teachers amid a shortage of teachers, but she was snubbed,” he claimed.

It is worth mentioning that the PPP government in 2008-13 regularised tens of thousands of daily wager employees and at that time some of the teachers could not be regularised.

Some of the teachers had been approved for regularisation but they were not regularised as the tenure of the government ended before that.

Since then teachers have been running from pillar to post for regularisation. During the tenure of PML-N, the Islamabad High Court gave a verdict that teachers should be hired through FPSC.

Those teachers, whose medicals were held, decided not to appear in the FPSC exam as they had filed a separate case in the apex court and their judgement was reserved and other teachers appeared.

A teacher said that on Friday [11th August] they contacted Secretary Education Waseem Ajmal Chaudhry and went to the ministry.

“Mr Chaudhry was busy somewhere so he directed Deputy Secretary (Admin) Hameed Khan Niazi and FDE Director General Amjad Ahmed…[who] reinstate all teachers immediately. We requested an order but Amjad Ahmed said that you have been terminated verbally and I have reinstated you verbally and will make sure that no one would create hurdles in your joining,” he said.

FDE Director Colleges Aftab Tariq said he would comment on the issue after Aug 14. Secretary Waseem Ajmal Chaudhry, while talking to Dawn, said that he was informed by the FDE that teachers did not appear in the exam of FPSC so he agreed that such teachers should be sacked.

“I don’t have any grudge against the teachers but I want to ensure the quality of education. It is correct that teachers have been teaching for over a decade but it was not understandable why they refused to take the exam,” he said.

“However when teachers contacted me I gave a direction that they should be given an opportunity to defend their case. We will decide after hearing them…teachers will be allowed to join again from August 15,” Mr Chaudhry added.

Published in Dawn, August 13th, 2023