PESHAWAR: The academic search committee has short-listed 57 candidates to fill nine posts of vice-chancellors in public sector universities in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, according to officials.

They said that appointment process of vice-chancellors entered the final stage as the short-listed candidates were called for interview. The interview will be conducted on Monday and Tuesday (today and tomorrow) by the search committee in Islamabad.

Officials said that vacant posts at nine public sector universities were advertised on September 28 by the provincial higher education department. They said that 191 candidates applied for the vacant posts of vice-chancellors when the appointment process was commenced about five months ago.

Three varsities functioning without regular head for more than a year

Former federal minister for science and technology Dr Attaur Rehman is chairman of the academic search committee while its members include former governor of State Bank of Pakistan Ishrat Hussain, Rector of Ripha University Dr G M Miana, Lahore University of Management Sciences Vice-Chancellor Dr Sohail Naqvi, dean of Lums Prof Arif Nazeer Butt, former deputy chairman Planning Commission of Pakistan Dr Akram Shaikh and HED Secretary Zafar Ali Shah.

Officials said that 57 candidates were short-listed by the committee after scrutinising the academic credentials of the people, who applied for the posts of vice-chancellors.

The universities where the posts of vice-chancellors are lying vacant include University of Peshawar, University of Engineering and Technology Peshawar, University of Swat, University of Swabi, Bacha Khan University Charsadda, Khushal Khan Khattak University Karak, Malakand University, University of Science and Technology Bannu and Kohat University of Science and Technology.

Three of these universities including UET Peshawar, Kohat University of Science and Technology and University of Swat have been functioning without regular vice-chancellors for more than one year.

Officials said that the short-listed candidates, who were present in the country, would appear before the academic search committee in Islamabad for interview while those, who were currently serving in different foreign countries, would be interviewed through video link. They said that short-listed candidates had applied for more than one university.

According to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Universities Act, 2012, the academic search committee would recommend a panel of three candidates for the post of vice-chancellor for each university after conducting interviews of all of them.

The higher education department would forward the recommended panel of candidates to the chief minister, who would advise the governor/chancellor to appoint his recommended candidate as vice-chancellor.

Section 12 of the law states: “The vice-chancellor shall be appointed by the chancellor on the advice of government from a panel of three candidates recommended by the academic search committee.”

The law insists on initiating appointment process of a vice-chancellor six months prior to ending the tenure of the incumbent in the best interest of the respective universities.

Section 12 (3) of KPUA states: “The process of selection of a new vice-chancellor shall be initiated six months prior to the expiration of the existing term of the incumbent.”

Despite the clear provision in the law, these universities are currently functioning without regular vice-chancellor as their appointment process was not initiated on proper time.

Published in Dawn, March 13th, 2017