THE much-awaited advertisement about 250 positions of Combined Competitive Examinations (CCE) after nearly half a decade by Sindh Public Service Commission (SPSC) was a sigh of relief for thousands of students who are struggling to find good employment opportunities in the province.

But hopes and aspirations of the candidates were dealt a heavy blow on April 30 when the date of the screening test, set on May 12, was extended by about two months.

Far too often, the said exam has a history of being marred by mismanagement and alleged corruption in its ranks.

The reason this time, though a weak one, cited for the delay is not to accommodate the whopping number of aspirants (43,089) on a single day.

I am at an utter loss to understand how can important institutions such as the SPSC be so helpless that despite having four centres — Karachi, Hyderabad, Sukkur and Larkana — could not conduct the test on the prescribed date unlike other commissions in the country.

More importantly, conducting tests in phases at different dates casts numerous doubts about the transparency and fairness of the screening test.

Ironically, results of the rescheduled written CCE examinations, 2013, on the Supreme Court orders, has not been announced yet. This speaks volumes of playing with the future of thousands who reappeared in the exam, particularly those ill-fated 227 candidates who did qualify it earlier.

The Orwellian dictum that ‘some animals are more equal than others’ can wreak havoc for aspirants if the screening test is conducted in phases.

Therefore, to address the unending woes of the aspirants, it is time the SPSC chairman looked into the matter seriously and conducted the test on a same date and time at all centres.

Murtaza Dawach
Hyderabad

Published in Dawn, May 27th, 2018