Private schools need to be dealt with someone like Ayesha Mumtaz

ISLAMABAD: Although the Competition Commission of Pakistan has started inquiry into the matter of undue fee hike and adding multiple anonymous heads in the fee challan, however parents of students believe that the private schools need someone like Ayesha Mumtaz to check hefty school fees and substandard education.
A well-placed source in the Competition Commission of Pakistan informed The News that the commission has received floods of complaints against the raise in fee by private schools across the country. The CCP is receiving complaints from each and every corner of the country on daily basis because of which the scope of inquiry into fee raise issue has been broaden and the CCP would look into the matter across the country.
The CCP is looking from many angles while conducting the inquiry of school fee raise as the nature of complaints varies from across the country. In order to ensure transparency into the matter the CCP would look into the matter thoroughly however the source said he could not give any deadline to finalise the inquiry.
Ms. Ehtasham while talking to The News informed that her kid is studying in one of the private schools located in posh sector of Islamabad. The school management handed her over the fee challan worth Rs80000 for two months and I was shocked to see the fee voucher. The school management is charging Rs39000 tuition fee, Rs19500 annual charges, Rs18600 books charges, Rs2298 advance tax and Rs600 for generator charges.
“It is becoming very hard for parents to send their kids in good private schools as they keep increasing fees on regular basis and if someone has more than one kid then it would become further difficult to send them in private schools,” she commented.
It is pertinent to mention here that all private schools are charging taxes from parents while collecting school fees however majority of these schools do not pay taxes to the government.
Similarly the government too is not serious in monitoring the private schools as it has created Private Education Institution Regulatory Authority. However the government has not appointed the head of this authority that could chair the authority and regulate the private schools. It is pertinent to mention here that it is necessary that the private schools are bound to raise school fees as per Consumer Price Index and this could be done only when the Private Education Institution Regulatory Authority is fully active and legislation is done in this regard.
Another parent who requested not to be named said after receiving the challan of such an exorbitant fee I decided to take out my kid from that school and he contacted the management for this purpose. However he was shocked to know when the management replied that he could take his kid out of the school by giving one month’s notice. He said there is no authority to control these private schools and regulate them and urged the government to appoint the Private Education Institution Regulatory Authority’s chairman.
It is interesting to note here that the schools are not only charging for school uniforms, books but they are also charging the income tax from the parents.
Ihsan Ali a concerned parent while talking to The News said, last week I wrote an email to the principal of a private school where his kid is studying and raised some queries about multiple anonymous heads given in the fee challan. However, he never received any response from the school management till today. He further said he also tried to register my concerns about the quality of teaching in the school and result was the same.
“The school management is only interested in monthly dues and if you show any concern, they don’t even bother to respond, taking a corrective measure is far from their imagination. They charge us more than 50% of the total tuition fee in the name of additional services that they don’t really provide. Almost 20 thousand charges are applied for ICT equipment that don’t really function round the year and class is also once or twice in a week and almost 15 thousands per annum for health and security charges for no health service or facility. There is some “other charges” worth more than Rs25000 per annum. I don’t understand for what they get tuition fee if they top up this fee with so many other charges,” he informed.
He said they are happy that CCP is conducting inquiry into the matter however it is necessary that they should speed up the inquiry so that parents should be saved from paying extra charges to these schools. He said there is need of a person like Ayesha Mumtaz who could take stern action against the hefty school fees and substandard education.
It is pertinent to mention here that besides CCP, the parents have also sent their complaints to the President of Pakistan, the Prime Minister, Education Minister, Supreme Court of Pakistan, Islamabad High Court, Federal Bureau of Revenue (FBR) and Private Educational Institute Regulatory Authority (PEIRA) and demanded the authorities to ask the private schools to withdraw the fee challans issued in September until matters related to inflation, hidden heads and taxes are resolved to the satisfaction of the authorities as well as parents.