To punish the historic Government Muhammadan Anglo Oriental College’s administration for being politically active against the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz, the Punjab government has apparently decided not to provide any financial support to the college for faculty development, infrastructure and other needs, Pakistan Today learnt on Wednesday.
The college’s Mass Communication Department, especially, is being made to face the brunt and no regular faculty has been hired to impart education to the students. The department has also received a warning from the Punjab University that said that the department’s affiliation with the university would be cancelled if faculty is not arranged soon enough. Sources in the administration said the Education Department had been requested again and again to provide the required faculty but a PML-N mafia was not allowing this.
“MAO College has always been anti-Sharifs and now since they are in power, they are doing all they can to suppress any anti-PML-N activities in the future,” sources said, adding “the CM has time and again claimed that he has taken many initiatives to promote education in the province but on the other hand, his government is punishing the students of MAO College for expressing their opinion.”
“We have received many requests from MAO Principal Dr Farhan Abadat Yar Khan over the issue of lack of staff but there is nothing we can do about it because the education minister and the Higher Education Department are not interested,” an official in the HED, asking not to be named, said while talking to Pakistan Today.
“Boys belonging to the middle class study at the MAO College and come from far flung areas of the province but the CM is not giving the college its due respect,” he said.
“Our college’s student union sided with the PML-Q and now PML-N is taking its revenge. The Mass Communication Department gets the top position in the university examinations and it would be unfair to them if Punjab government remains obstinate on the issue,” a faculty member of the college said.
“We are not asking for laptops but for teachers to teach us,” a student said, adding that their future was being compromised over a political issue.
“The Punjab government is closing the doors of education on us,” he said.
Lahore Director Colleges Rana Naseem said he was not aware of the actual status of MAO College’s Mass Communication Department and added that he would enquire the matter.
He said however in the beginning of this session, Punjab government had permitted all colleges’ administrations to hire visiting faculty and it was the administration’s fault if they had not hired anyone.
