‘Most varsities fail to implement cabinet decision on FATA reserved seats’

ISLAMABAD: Lawmakers from the Federally Administered Tribal Area (FATA) voiced serious reservations over lukewarm and baffling response from some universities to Higher Education Commission (HEC) regarding doubling of quota for FATA students by public and private sector universities. According to documents and interviews with lawmakers, failure of the education institutes to implement decision of the federal cabinet tantamount to non-implementation of National Action Plan (NAP). The documents reviewed by Daily Times reveal that the decision to double the number of reserved seats for FATA students was never implemented in letter and spirit, forcing Senator Hilal-ur-Rehman, chairman Standing Committee on SAFRON in senate, to take up the issue with the quarters concerned. Soon after the tragic APS Peshawar attack in 2014, civil-military leadership came up with a 20-point agenda—- the National Action Plan (NAP)—- to rid the country of scourge of terrorism. The mayhem and turmoil in the tribal region were considered as one of the major reasons behind the spiraling terror incidents, prompting leaderships to make administrative and development reforms in FATA, part of the NAP. In addition, the documents stated the Cabinet Division and Ministry of States and Frontier Region (SAFRON) also took serious note of the non-implementation of decision of the Federal Cabinet by various educational institutions. According to documents, the non-implementation has forced the concerned ministry to include the issue of doubling of seats for FATA students in various educational institutions in the agenda of the Council of Common Interest (CCI). Back in November 2015, former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif had formed a committee tasked to undertake reforms in the tribal region, which inter alia reached the conclusion that illiteracy in FATA is one of the major causes of growing extremism in the country. In this state of affairs, the Federal Cabinet decided to double the quota for students of FATA in the educational institutions including medical and engineering institutes throughout the country. The documents reveal that so far only 36 public and 12 private sector universities have doubled the existing quota for students amid bizarre replies to the HEC. For instance, Government College University, Faisalabad, in its reply to HEC stated that quota for FATA students has been increased from one seat to two seats with the condition that one seat has been fixed for male and one for female student. “In case, if there is no female candidate then the reserved seat would go waste. This fixing of 50% quota for women has actually an attempt to deny admission to male students,” said an official of the university who wished anonymity because he isn’t authorized to speak to media. According to HEC documents, as many as 83 public sector and 42 private sector universities have furnished their replies on the subject. “The responses from the remaining public and private universities are being compiled and would be forwarded to the HEC accordingly,” the documents stated. In the case of Government College University Lahore, one of the premium institutions of the country, the formula adopted for doubling the seats is weird too. It stated: “The number of seats for FATA has been increased from 5 to 10 with 5 seats each in part-I and part-II. Here it fails to acknowledge that no new admissions are granted in part-II rather the students of part-I are promoted to part-II every year.” According to the same formula, it has increased the number of seats in each semester of the BS-Programs. In addition, the University of Education Lahore in its reply to HEC about doubling of quota for FATA students stated: “As many as 108 seats are reserved for FATA students. However, as per last five-year enrollment history, maximum four students got admission against reserved seats. Authority decided to retain the same numbers of seats for FATA students.” When contacted, a senior official at the FATA Secretariat who wished anonymity because he isn’t authorized to speak to media said: “If this is the case, then SAFRON and the FATA Secretariat are solely responsible for failing to inform and shortlist students within the given time for reserved seats in various universities”. Senator Hilal, told Daily Times that increasing the number of seats in educational institutions was part of FATA reforms as envisaged under NAP. He said non-implementation of the decision of Federal Cabinet in letter and spirit amounts to failure of NAP. The repatriation process of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) to FATA is about to be completed amid fear of students’ drift to ignorance and dropouts from educational institutions, he noted. Jamal-ud-Din, a lawmaker from FATA and Chairman Standing Committee, States and Frontier Regions, said if students of the tribal belt were not provided with educational facilities in line with decision of the Federal Cabinet, the young and promising students may fall prey to extremism, illiteracy and subsequently unemployment. “I am disappointed regarding replies by various universities to implement the decision of the Federal Cabinet but I’m optimistic that the HEC will resolve the legitimate problem being faced by the FATA students,” he observed. However, Senator Hilal lauded the administration of Bahauddin Zakaria University Multan for implementing the decision in letter and spirit. Published in Daily Times, December 21st 2017.