ISLAMABAD – The process of verification of parliamentarians’ educational degrees has failed to achieve the desired results due to the uncooperative attitude of public universities with the Higher Education Commission (HEC).
A senior HEC official said at least 342 degrees could not be verified because of the absence of supporting documents, which the universities had not provided to HEC. HEC focal person Raheem Bux Channa told Pakistan Today on Sunday that degrees and supplementary forms of the parliamentarians were pending with various universities for the past several months.
He said varsities seemed reluctant to provide the needed documents – matriculation and intermediate certificates – of at least 342 lawmakers. HEC had been sending reminders to the universities, but the institutions were not cooperating with the commission, he said.
Another HEC official wishing not to be named said, “In four cases, including that of a federal minister, the Election Commission of Pakistan even did not submit their matriculation certificates to HEC for verifications,” he added. He said the government was influencing vice chancellors in order to create hurdles in the process, apparently for fear of more fake degree cases making the headlines.
The official said it seemed that VCs of all public universities had been directed by the senior officials of the incumbent government to delay the process for as long as they could.
