PESHAWAR: Peshawar University Teachers Association (Puta) has alleged that higher education department is delaying appointments of permanent heads of public sector universities to manipulate their affairs.

`The sitting pro vice-chancellor of UoP was also appointed through a bargain under which he is trying to pressure us to withdraw the Botanical Garden case from the court,` Puta president Dr Jamil Chitrali told a press conference at Puta Hall here on Tuesday. The members of the executive body of Puta were also presentatthe pressconference.

Dr Chitrali alleged that officials on deputation at higher education department were trying to curtail the autonomy of publicsector universities. He said that an additional secretary, Khalid Khan, had been at the department for about eight years. The official should be sent back to his parent department and an eligible person should be appointed on the post, he added.

Dr Chitrali alleged that the additional secretary was root cause of many problems in the public sector universities. `The bureaucrat was the convener of the committee formed to draft the statutes for the universities.

Sofar the statutes have not been approved,` he added.

The Puta president said that the official also worked as project director in Swabi University.

`The post was not advertised,` he alleged. He said that the same official stopped notification of his appointment as project director of the proposed Chitral University.

Dr Chitrali said that there should be an internal promotion mechanism in universities for the teachers so that political influences and violation of merit could be eliminate d. He said that 10 out of 18 public sector universities in the province were functioning without a permanent vice-chancellor.`Higher education department has kept these universities intentionally like this so that it can pressure the temporary heads of the universities and get things done it s way,` allege d Dr Chitrali.

Khalid Khan, when contacted for his version, said that shortlisting of vice-chancellors was under process. `I am not part of it. The search committee is headed by Dr Ataur Rehamn,` he said with a bit of agitation as he heard about the long list of allegations against him by Puta.

The official said that pro vicechancellor of UoP was actually third on the list as first was a retired dean and second one was a woman, who not acceptable to Friends group, a teachers` group Dr Chitrali belonged to. He said that the list was sent by former UoP former vice-chancellor Dr Rasul Jan, who was also from their faction. `The chief minister has done it,` he added.

The official said that he was on deputation at higher education department for about five years.

`Nobody appoints oneself. Am I chief secretary of this province, he questioned.

The official said that he was not project director of SwabiUniversity but was given additional charge of project director of a development project. There were three ways of appointment including deputation, posting or advertisement. The official said that he was given only additional charge.

The Puta executive body members said that public sector universities should be freed from political influence and given autonomy. All the 18 public sector universities in the province should have their own specific Acts according to their needs, they added.

Dr Chitrali said that of the Rs3.18 billion annual budget of UoP, only Rs100 million was allocated for research. The university having around 16,000 students had only 674 teachers.

However, the number of employees was 3,800, he said.

Dr Chitrali said that two retired employees of UoP were visiting the administration offices at nighttime that raised suspicions. He said that one of the former officials was previously blamed for harassment and the other was accused in a land scam taken up by National Accountability Bureau.