KARACHI: In a first, the Sindh government has tasked 37 MPAs belonging to both ruling and opposition parties with the supervision of 94 public schools in their respective constituencies in Karachi, Hyderabad, Thatta and Sujawal.

The 94 public schools — 74 in Karachi, 11 in Hyderabad and nine in Thatta and Sujawal – have been handed over to the over three dozen lawmakers, an overwhelming majority of them belong to the opposition Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan, under a school adoption programme initiated by Education Minister Syed Sardar Ali Shah.

A spokesperson for the education department said that the initiative aimed to promote education in Sindh by involving elected representative in overseeing the government-run educational institutions and taking steps to make them fully functional.

He said that minister Shah had written to all assembly members and urged them to adopt at least three schools each in their constituencies. Several MPAs submitted their proposals and following necessary procedures, the school education department on Thursday issued three separate notifications to “hand over the supervision of 94 schools to 37 MPAs in the first phase”.

Education dept notifies schools ‘adopted’ by govt, opposition lawmakers in their constituencies in Karachi, Hyderabad, Thatta and Sujawal

The spokesperson explained that after adopting the schools, the MPAs would be responsible for providing operational support to the administration.

He said: “Their responsibilities will include overseeing the teaching process and consulting with the school education department regarding administrative decisions. Since MPAs are representatives of their respective areas, they will ensure teachers’ attendance and play a role in increasing school enrolment.

“Additionally, in cases of unsatisfactory performance by the school principal or teachers, the MPAs can directly recommend to the school education department their transfers.

“The elected representatives will collaborate with parents and the community to promote education and co-curricular activities. They will also have the authority to use their funds for school infrastructure improvements,” the official added.

He stated that more MPAs had shown interest in adopting public schools in their constituencies and they would be given a supervisory role after completing necessary formalities.

32 Karachi MPAs to oversee 74 schools

According to a notification, 74 schools in Karachi have been placed under the supervision of 32 members of the Sindh Assembly elected from the metropolis.

The MPAs are: Leader of the Opposition in the Sindh Assembly Ali Khursheedi of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan, MPAs Syed Muhammad Usman, Moid Anver, Aamir Siddiqui, Faisal Rafiq, Muhammad Daniyal, Muhammad Dilawar, Rehan Bandukda, Fahim Ahmed, Sheikh Abdullah, Naseer Ahmed, Syed Ejaz Ul Haq, Rehan Akram, Abdul Waseem, Abdul Basit, Adil Askari, Iftikhar Alam, Maaz Mehboob, Mazhir Amir, Jamal Ahmed, Sharif Jamal, Najm Mirza, Shaukat Ali, Arsalan Parvaiz, Farhan Ansari, Mahesh Kumar Haseja, Aneel Kumar, Sumita Afzal Syed, Sikandar Khatoon, Farah Sohail, Quratulain, and Bilquis Mukhtar.

Eleven schools in Hyderabad have been given to MPAs Sabir Hussain, Muhammad Rashid Khan and Nasir Hussain Qureshi of the same district.

Additionally, nine schools in Thatta and Sujawal have been handed over to MPAs Syed Riaz Hussain Shah Sheerazi and Heer Soho.

‘A serious approach towards education’

Education Minister Sardar Shah praised the efforts of the assembly members in adopting schools, calling it a serious approach towards education.

In a statement, he said that both the treasury and opposition lawmakers were united on the matter of educational development. “There should be no negative politics concerning the education of Sindh’s children.”

He said that direct supervision would make it easier to solve school-related problems. He hoped that these schools would set an example, which will help improve other public schools as well.

Meanwhile, Opposition leader Ali Khursheedi of the MQM-P termed the adoption of public schools by MPAs a revolutionary step and hoped that it would bring necessary improvement in the education system.

Published in Dawn, October 18th, 2024