Ad-hoc lecturers continue protest despite CM’s assurance

PESHAWAR: Threatening to intensify protest if their services were not regularised within one week, the Ad hoc Lecturers Association continued to protest on the fifth consecutive day on Friday even after getting assurance from the chief minister about acceptance of demands.

The protesting lecturers, who had been protesting for the regularisation of services, outside the Peshawar Press Club, told The News that the assurances couldn’t be materialised in the last five years.

“This is our third time, we postponed our protests on the assurance of Minister for Higher Education Mushtaq Ghani, but later nothing practical was done,” said general secretary of the association Safiullah.

He, however, thanked Chief Minister Pervez Khattak for visiting the protest camp and listening to their problems.The Higher Education Department appointed ad hoc lecturers in 37 colleges in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) in 2011.

The protesters said they received salaries after three to four months and said their services were extended on yearly basis. They recalled that Mushtaq Ghani during a visit to their protest camp had promised to remove technicalities by presenting separate bills in provincial assembly.

The protesters said that Mushtaq Ghani had announced the formation of a committee comprising secretary Higher Education, director Higher Education, and director Education Fata under his chairmanship, but it proved as mere lip service. “We are thankful to the chief minster, who visited us and directed the minister and authorities to solve our problems within one week, but we have had bad experience with government,” said a lecturer.

He added: “We will remain on road for another week and wait for government’s directives before finalising our future line of action.” The lecturer wishing not to be named said that the indifference of the government towards the acceptance of their demands had created unrest among them.Around 100 of the total 215 ad hoc lecturers are women, who also join their male colleagues in the protest.