THIS refers to letters ‘School transport’ (Aug 24) and ‘School bus safety’ (Aug 31). Following the Karachi police campaign against the violators of school bus safety regulations, the school transport mafia has decided to move court against Sindh Transport Authority guidelines.

I have been recently told by the school bus owner who picks and drops my children that they have also decided to run their vehicles on petrol till they do not get a stay order against safety regulations.

For this purpose, they have also stepped up their fund raising efforts and my school van owner even came to my home at an odd hour to collect the fee in advance.

He warned that the school van fee would soon be raised if the vehicle would be run on petrol. First, who would ensure that their vehicles were really being run on petrol and not on CNG or LNG? This could only be ensured if the CNG/LNG kits were removed from school buses, which is also one of the safety guidelines.

Then these school transporters are already charging the van fee on the basis of petrol or diesel prices while running their vehicles on CNG which is a cheaper fuel. Thus victimised parents are being made to pay in advance so that safety guidelines could be challenged in court. This is like a thief asking for money to get a lawyer. It is not difficult to analyse what would be the outcome if a petition is filed by the school transport mafia. The opponents of military courts might now get an idea why they are needed instead of ordinary civilian courts.

I also wonder why Rangers should not take this school transport mafia to task and present them at an anti-terrorism or a military court. I say this because we have lost several innocent children in CNG/LNG cylinder explosions or fire in school buses.

Isn’t this school transport mafia’s blackmail and putting our children’s lives in danger for their financial gains a form of terrorism? Will anybody help parents to get rid of this money-minting ruthless mafia?

Jamshaid Ahmad

Karachi

Published in Dawn, September 2nd, 2015

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