KARACHI, July 11: Former City Nazim Niamatullah Khan has demanded the Chief Minister, Ghulam Arbab Rahim, to approve the SNEs of 32 new colleges set up during his tenure and appointment of teachers there be made through the Public Service Commission. The ex-city nazim said the opening of 32 new colleges during his four-year term was a testimony to the fact that education was his top priority. However, he criticised the Sindh government of not making appointments in these colleges, despite several requests.

Despite the fact, Mr Niamat said the city government had started teaching process in these colleges by hiring honorary teachers and through transfers and postings. Now, thousands of students were engaged in acquiring education, he added.

He denied the Local Government Adviser, Waseem Akhtar’s, claim that the city government had not even established five colleges, adding that the ‘de facto city nazim’ should get the list of the 32 new colleges from the EDO Higher Education to update his information.

Mr Niamat pointed out that he had provided Rs11.6 million out of his discretionary funds during fiscal 2004-05 for furniture and other requirements of these colleges.

Meanwhile, Niamatullah on Monday termed the transfer of city government’s District Officer (Land) as illegal, and said the said act of Sindh government was tantamount to challenging the Election Commission’s authority.

“It seems the Sindh government and caretaker city government have refused to accept the authority of the Chief Election Commissioner of Pakistan and had deliberately defied his orders,” he remarked.

Niamat said the city government had shown the transfer of the said officer to have been done on June 30 while he was working at his office till July 9. He said a 17-grade junior officer was given the post of the grade-19 post of DO Land.

He appealed to President Musharraf, Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz and Chief Election Commissioner to take notice of such irregularities and order an inquiry into transfers of officers. He also demanded the CEC to cancel the illegal transfer of the DO Land.

Fearing of illegal allotment of land, Mr Niamat said it was likely that due to transfer of the land officer, the land of Safari Park and Daman-i-Koh worth billions of rupees would be sold to the land mafia or handed over to provincial ministers, influential officers and fake non-government organizations.

—APP/PPI