WHENEVER I hear people complain that they find it terribly difficult to pay the fees of their children in a lump sum every three months, my mind races back to the renowned educationist, Begum Amena Majeed Malik. I was sitting with her in the office of PECHS Girls School, Karachi, when one of her acquaintances suggested that she should follow in the footsteps of the management of the then newly set-up schools by collecting three-month fees from parents. “That will improve your cash flow and you will need fewer people in the fees department,” the lady added.

“Bibi, the day the parents of girls studying in my school start getting their salaries in advance every three months, I shall follow your advice,” she replied in her characteristic soft and sedate voice.

I wonder why the government or the judiciary do not ban the practice of collecting two- or three-month fee in one go, except during the vacations.

Asif Noorani
Karachi

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DESPITE the chief justice’s appreciable efforts to provide relief to parents of schoolgoing children, a large number of schools are still collecting bimonthly tuition fee in advance.

Moreover, some schools are also billing a five per cent withholding tax on top of their tuition fee which they claim was asked by the Federal Bureau of Revenue to collect from students whose tuition fee is Rs 200,000 or more per annum.

This is ridiculous and another way of minting money from already stressed parents. I hope the government will look into this matter.

Aqeel Razi
Karachi

Published in Dawn, December 16th, 2018