Strike off but daily protests to continue: KUTS

Karachi

The Karachi University Teachers Society (KUTS) on Thursday called off its strike and announced that it will hold classes as well as examinations from Friday (today).

However, the KUTS announced that daily protests would continue till all demands are met and the KU administration clarifies the matters about mismanagement and misconduct at the campus.

Addressing the general body meeting, KUTS President Professor Dr Shakeel Farooqi said that teachers would once again come forward on August 9 to stage a demonstration against numerous issues being faced by the teachers on a regular basis.

“The teaching community would observe August 09 as Black Day,” he said. ­

As per a KUTS statement, representatives of teacher and non-teaching employees held a meeting with KU Vice Chancellor Professor Dr Muhammad Qaiser during which it was decided that the KU VC would ask the director finance to submit his resignation.

The meeting also decided that a complete report would be shared with the Sindh government regarding the KU director finance so that new director finance could be appointed on a priority basis. According the statement, the teaching and non-teaching faculty has given a 10day deadline to the KU administration to sort out the matter. It said that classes would be held from Friday, both in morning and evening sessions.

According to the KUTS, financial affairs have been disturbed deliberately.

“People have learnt more about incompetency of the KU director finance and his ignorance due to which salary was not released on time. On the other hand, when the Higher Education Commission officials and the Sindh governor held a meeting at the Governor House, the salaries were issued on the same day,” it read.

“Neither the HEC has released due grants till to date not the government has paid the extra financial support to the university so that its administration could pay increment in salaries as announced in the last budget.”

The retired employees and staff hadn’t received their pensions due to same reasons, the statement added.

The teachers gathered at the new Administration Block and attended the KUTS general body meeting. Meanwhile, KUTS has also called another general body meeting on August 11 to review the situation.

The Employees Welfare Association has also decided to participates in August 9 Black Day and they will also be present in the rally scheduled to be held on August 11, according to the statement.