ISLAMABAD: Members of a Senate standing committee staged a walkout over the regularisation of daily wage teachers on Tuesday. The members later resumed the meeting, and directed the Capital Administration and Development Division (CADD) secretary to find a solution and inform the committee on May 24.

During the meeting, which was chaired by Senator Talha Mehmood, committee members became emotional after a daily wage teacher broke down while speaking at the meeting.

The teacher, Rabia Waheed, teaches at the IMCG G-10/2 and has a Bachelors of Education (B.Ed) and a masters degree and has been teacher for several years.

“[Daily wage teachers] have been hearing that steps are being taken to regularise teachers, and it was suggested by the Federal Directorate of Education (FDE) that we get the degrees attested from the Higher Education Commission (HEC). We did it, but every day we hear that we don’t deserve to be regularised, although our results show that our performance is better than those who are regularised,” she said.

CADD secretary asked to resolve matter, inform committee on May 24

“We get Rs13,000 per month, but even that isn’t given to us during the summer vacations so we spend Ramazan and Eid without that meagre remuneration. Last year, we held a sit-in for 80 days, but instead of addressing our issue the government registered an FIR against teachers,” Ms Waheed said.

Senator Mohammad Yousaf Badini said private school students pay Rs25,000 in fees per month, while government school teachers are paid Rs13,000 a month, and called the system a joke.

Mr Mehmood said interns at the Senate Secretariat receive Rs60,000 per month, which shows how health and education are prioritised.

“It is nothing but a joke, if CADD can not address the issue just tell us and we will pass a ruling, and after that it will become binding to regularise the teachers within 60 days. However that step will become a matter of embarrassment for the bureaucracy,” he said.

All the members of the committee, which included Osman Saifullah Khan, Hidayatullah, Rahila Magsi, Kalsoom Perveen, Haji Saifullah Khan Bangash and Najma Hameed, staged a walkout.

After their walkout, the senators took on an aggressive tone and grilled both CADD Secretary Hasan Iqbal and FDE Director General Shahnaz A. Riaz, who shifted the responsibility of appointing daily wage teachers on to school principals.

The CADD secretary claimed that a case for regularisation has been initiated and he was following the file from table to table. But when the committee chairperson asked where that file was, the secretary failed to respond.

Mr Iqbal said: “The prime minister can address that problem as he has the authority to regularise the teachers.”

Mr Khan suggested that the committee play its role in addressing the matter before Ramazan.

Mr Mehmood directed the CADD secretary to resolve the matter after meeting with secretaries from the Cabinet Division, the law ministry, the Establishment Division and representatives of the Prime Minister’s Office.

He said the concerned official from the Prime Minister’s Office would also be called to address the issue on May 24.

Committee members suggested appointing teachers through a “one post one candidate” formula, and said it should be ensured that candidates are qualified for the posts.

Ms Perveen said that Tahirul Qadri held violent sit-ins in Islamabad and was not harmed, but teachers were facing court hearings after holding peaceful sit-ins. The committee also directed the inspector general of police and the Kohsar police station house officer to submit a report in the next meeting.

In 2011, the then prime minister announced that all contract employees would be regularised, and a committee was formed to begin the regularisation process. However, the process ended with the PPP’s tenure, due to which some daily wage employees were regularised while several others were not.

Published in Dawn, May 18th, 2016