LAHORE: To select new chief of federal Higher Education Commission (HEC), a six-member search committee has started interviewing the 60 short-listed candidates.

Interestingly, one of the candidates refused to appear before the interview panel, objecting to its composition.

The post of the HEC chairman fell vacant after completion of Dr Mukhtar Ahmed’s tenure on April 15.

HEC Executive Director Arshad Ali, also a candidate for the post, has been posted acting HEC chairman until the new appointment.

On Thursday, the committee comprising S Babar Ali (convener), Dr Sania Nishtar, Dr Faisal Bari, Shahnaz Wazir Ali, Mir Qamar Baig and Akbar Hussain Durrani (members), started the interview process.

The shortlisted candidates include Punjab Higher Education Commission (PHEC) chairman Prof Dr Mohammad Nizamuddin, International Islamic University Islamabad (IIUI) Rector Dr Masoom Yasinzai, COMSATS Executive Director Dr S M Junaid Zaidi, former vice chancellor (VC), University of Agriculture Faisalabad (UAF), Dr Iqrar Ahmad Khan, Sindh Madressatul Islam University VC Dr Mohammad Ali Shaikh, Government College University (GCU) Lahore VC Prof Dr Hassan

Amir Shah, University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences (UVAS) VC Dr Talat Naseer Pasha, University of Sargodha (UoS) former VC Dr Akram Chaudhry and Bahauddin Zakariya University (BZU) VC Dr Tahir Amin.

The former VC of Punjab University, Dr Mujahid Kamran, has written a letter to Ministry of Education and Professional Training secretary showing distrust of some of the members of the search committee.

The letter reads: “The only member from the public sector (on the body) is the Secretary, Ministry of Education and Professional Training, because that could not be avoided. The control of the search committee by the private sector is highly questionable.”

Published in Dawn, April 21st, 2018