Lecturer slots for sale… Rs 400,000 only!

The Sindh Public Service Commission (SPSC) has cleared at least 29 lecturers purely on political grounds and in a few cases the candidates have paid Rs 400,000 for the post, Pakistan Today has learnt. Sources in the SPSC said that the commission had invited application for at least 29 posts (21 for male and eight for female candidates) of lecturers for the Sindhi subject on the urban and rural quota.
After the posts were advertised, as many as 130 male and 21 female candidates had applied for the posts and went through a formal written examination three months ago, they said. The commission interviewed the candidates, who had passed the written examination, on July 12 and, interestingly, the results of the qualified lecturers were announced on July 14 after a day’s gap only, they added.
Moreover, two members of the commission’s selection committee – Sindh’s prominent writer Inayat Baloch and the chairman of the Sindhi Language Authority – had refused to take part in the selection process at the eleventh hour due to reasons best known to them, the sources said. The successful candidates included sons of Baloch and Gul Hassan Kalmati – an influential personality of Gadap – among others, the sources added.
They said other candidates, who believed the selection was not based on merit, have forwarded letters to the chief justice of Pakistan (CJP), prime minister (PM), Sindh governor and Sindh chief minister (CM), apprising them of the injustice.
Reportedly, these candidates have also provided proofs supporting their allegations, they added.
Ahmed Soomro, who is one of the over 40 affected candidates, told Pakistan Today that four to five successful candidates had admitted that they had paid Rs 400,000 to the SPSC authorities for the job.
Besides, the future of the Sindhi language would also be at stake as the incompetent people would do nothing for the centuries-old language, he said.
“We (the affectees) have approached the CJP, PM, governor and CM, and demanded the authorities to take strict notice of the situation so that the process of recruitment could be made only on merit,” he added.
The complainants said that they would stage a demonstration against the unfairness of the SPSC on Tuesday (today) outside the Karachi Press Club.
They said that they would file a constitutional petition in the Sindh High Court if they are denied justice.