ISLAMABAD: In an attempt to further tighten the noose around International Islamic University, Islamabad (IIUI) President Professor Dr Ahmed Yousaf Al-Draiweesh, the employees of IIUI have demanded the Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) to take suo moto notice against university president for awarding BS International Relations degree to his son.
Through a letter signed by more than 50 teachers of the university, the CJP has been requested to take a suo moto notice to inquire the awarding of the degree to IIUI president’s son Abdul Majeed Ahmed Al-Draiweesh to prevent further damage to university’s reputation.
Yousaf Al-Draiweesh, who is about to complete his tenure as IIUI president, is under fire since the emergence of the case.
The letter invoked the CJP’s recent promises to improve the quality of healthcare and education and said that IIUI requires his urgent, serious and sympathetic attention being a public asset of international stature, whose reputation has been badly damaged due to mismanagement and mishandling of administrative and academic affairs.
The letter also states that the committee formed to enquire the matter of awarding the degree to president’s son is questionable as it mainly comprises those who facilitated the awarding the degree in complete violation of rules of the university. “Hence, the committee seems more like a settlement committee, aimed at rescuing the IIUI president only, instead of an enquiry committee,” it read.
The letter further said that individuals allegedly involved in the process of awarding degree might get influenced in the process of investigating the matter. This would be no less than a disaster for the university and the process of justice, the letter added.
“Moreover, the history of enquiry committees at IIUI is utterly depraved as many such cases can be quoted from the recent past where these committees either did not complete the investigation or prepared reports appeasing the high-ups at IIUI while ruining the principles of justice,” the letter alleged.
It further said that in January 2018, everything was forgiven in a proven financial corruption case and IIUI president waived off all the penalties imposed on the accused and ordered to return the recovered amount to him.
The staff, therefore, requested the CJP to enquire the matter and formation an unbiased and competent committee headed by a judge of the high court. They further requested that the committee should also investigate related irregularities and financial scams at the university.
It is pertinent to mention here that the five-member fact-finding committee tasked to probe the illegal award of the degree to IIUI president’s son had given him a clean chit in the case.
The president, who is a Saudi national and knows only Arabic language, allegedly awarded a BS (Hons) degree to his son in violation of rules and using his influence. The degree, for the period of 2013 to 2017, was awarded to Abdul Majeed despite the fact that he barely attended classes or appeared in exams.
The time of the letter is of great significance as the meeting of Board of Trustees is scheduled for April 12 in which the decision of a new, or reappointment of the incumbent president, would be made.
Talking to Pakistan Today, Federation of All Pakistan Universities Academic Staff Association (FAPUASA) Islamabad chapter President Dr Shehzad Ashraf Chaudhry said that they had already raised question over the committee tasked to probe the matter so they could not accept its findings.
He further said that the committee is yet to make the report public, which might be released on April 12 in the Board of Trustees meeting when the decision for the new president would be made.
Shehzad said that the president is lobbying to get reappointment as university president again. Therefore, the committee hastily gave him a clean chit to pave way for his reappointment.
He said that the CJP may constitute an independent committee to probe the matter fairly and justly.
