LAHORE – Five senior teachers of the Punjab University (PU) denied to support PU Vice Chancellor (VC) Professor Dr Mujahid Kamran and avoided to participate in a meeting that was arranged by Teachers Front (TF) in VC’s favour.
Some PU teachers disclosed that these five teachers had been ‘obliged’ by the VC in the past. Their names are Hafiz Muhammad Iqbal, Dr Amin Ather, Dr Zahid Karim Khan, Dr Ahsan Akhtar Naz and Dr Abdul Ghaffar. PU sources said that they were in close contact with the VC earlier and later when Punjab University Academic Staff Association (PUASA) turned its back on the VC, they also ‘ditched’ the VC.
Sources added that these teachers were ‘opportunists’ who after finding that the VC’s was ship sinking, preferred to jump from it. Around 200 PU teachers gathered at the PU Institute of Business and Information Technology (IBIT) and started waiting for these five teachers, who according to sources have changed their affiliations.
PUASA held a meeting in PU two weeks ago in which PUASA President Dr Maher Saeed Akhter threatened to launch a movement against VC. After the threat some neutral PU teachers also issued circular in VC’s favour, appreciated VC’s policies and announced to hold Tuesday’s meeting to counter the movement against VC. Although on Tuesday VC’s own ‘companions’ were missing, which annoyed the other attendees.
The teachers who showed up at the meeting asked the VC to ‘open his eyes’ and differentiate between his friends and foes. According to a senior PU official VC’s ‘most privileged’ five teachers were enjoying maximum facilities while his true friends and colleagues and other teachers found themselves discriminated. He said Hafiz Iqbal was holding six positions, violating the one-man-one-post rule, as he was the Institute of Education and Research dean, Affiliation Committee chairman, Selection Committee chairman, English Language Teaching Department chairman, Hall Council deputy chairman and Library Committee chairman.
He said that Dr Amin Ather also violated the same rules as he was the director Institute of Bio Chemistry and Bio Technology and the chairman of Hall Council as well. He said Dr Abdul Ghaffar was the chairman of Geography Department, while he also enjoyed the post of the chairman of PU Housing Society. He said the others too were privileged as Zahid Karim Khan was made PU Controller Examination while Dr Ahsan Akhtar Naz was made the director and was not removed by the VC despite pending inquires of academic corruptions against them.
A PU teacher said a number of PU teachers were ‘disheartened’ to find the ‘hegemony’ of these five teachers. He said these five teachers earned thousands of rupees by virtue of their high positions but today they did not bother to support VC. PU Registrar Dr Aurungzaib Alamgir and Physics Department Chairman Dr Shokat coordinated the meetings in VC’s favour and had no answer as to why five VC’s ‘close friends’ did not attend the meeting.
He said that however presence of teachers from various departments in the meeting showed that PU teaching community was united and will support VC if PUASA starts any movement against VC.
PU AFFAIRS – VC’s ‘mates’ fail to show up
