PESHAWAR: The provincial government came under firein the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly on Wednesday for engaging a private entity, National Testing Service, for carrying out the process for recruitments in its departments.

The lawmakers insisted that if the government didn`t trust own departments for appointments on merit, then how it could have confidence in the private organisation like NTS.

In fiery speeches, they questioned the credibility of NTS with several accusing the NTS staff members taking bribe for appointments to government departments.

The assembly`s session was chaired by Deputy Speaker Dr Mehar Taj Roghani.

The debate on the NTS began during the question hour.

The house later approved the written request of JUI-F member Munawar Hassan for a detailed discussion on the matter. Thechair will announce the discussion`s schedule af terwards.

In a written reply to the question of Sardar Hussain Chitrali, the elementary and secondary education department informed the house that NTS had collected Rs149 million from candidates as fee just for sitting the education department recruitment test.

It said during the last four years, the education department recruited 39,000 teachers through NTS in whose test, 310,650 candidates appeared.

Mr Chitrali said NTS had earned Rs149 million through the education department tests only, while the amount would be much more if tests of other departments were also considered.

`It is strange that a private organisation (NTS) is conducting tests for appointment to government employees.

If the government feels there are irregularities in appointments through its departments, then how it can trust a private organisation,` he said.

The lawmaker asked if the NT S employees were angels and how it was ensured that they didn`t take bribe for recruitment.

He said if the government didn`t trust own departments, the day was not far away when all departments as well as the provincial assembly would be operated by NGOs.ANP parliamentary leader Sardar Hussain Babak asked why the government felt the need to engage NTS for recruitment in the presence of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Education Testing and Evaluation Authority.

He said in the last two decades, no one had raised questions about the credibility and performance of the ETEA, which was established under a law for conducting tests for admission to medical and engineering colleges and awarding scholarships in educationalinstitutions.

The ANP leader asked under which procedure the government had hired the NTS services.

`Did any bidding take place before the selection of the NTS for the recruitment process? NT S is like a shop, where people go shopping (purchase jobs),` he insisted.

Mr Babak claimed he could prove that a person was declared top position holder in a test on payment of Rs700,000 bribe to the NTS staff members though he was earlier at the bottom of the merit list.

He said the government had confidence in shopkeepers (NTS) and not the ETEA.

Shiraz Khan of the PML-N declared NTS just a `showoff` and alleged that he knew several deserving candidates, who were denied jobs due to flaws in the NTS tests.

Responding to the criticism of lawmakers, law minister Imtiaz Shahid said theinvolvement of NTS had blocked the ways and means of corruption in the appointments to government departments.

He said the NTS charged each candidate from Rs300 to Rs400 for sitting a test, which was not a big amount to appoint someone on merit.

Sardar Hussain Chitrali drew the house`s attention towards delay in the release of funds for the upgradation of schools in Chitral.

He asked why the government had approved the upgradation of schools in the annual development programme if it was not to release funds.

The chair announced abrupt end to question hour without finishing the agenda to the annoyance of Sahibzada Sanaullah and Fakhar Azam Wazir of the PPP, whose questions were not taken up.

Both lawmakers tore apart the copies of the written agenda and questions and tossed them in the air in f ront of the chair`s dais.

The opposition members later staged a walkout to protest against the assembly secretariat`s failure to place on agenda the adjournment motion of Sardar Hussain Babak submitted few months ago.

Mr Babak said his adjournment motion was about the Bank of Khyber scandal.

The chair adjourned the session until Friday due to a lack of quorum.