KARACHI: Amid media reports on official deliberations to hand over the chancellor`s office to the chief minister through an amendment to the universities` law, the Federation of All Pakistan Universities Academic Staff Associations (Fapuasa) Sindh chapter announced on Wednesday plans to oppose any such development and stated the chancellor`s office shouldn`t be politicised.

The meeting, presided over by the Fapuasa president Prof Jurail Sangi, was held at Karachi University (KU).

During the meeting, president of Fapuasa expressed concern over what he described as the appointment of unqualified, inexperienced and retired personnel on key university positions, including vice chancellor, and urged the government to follow the law and principles of merit.`A non-PhD person lacking research and teaching experience has been appointed as the vice chancellor of Shaheed Benazir Bhutto University, Nawabshah, whereas a junior faculty member has been hired as pro-vice chancellor at Shaheed Benazir Bhutto Medical University, Larkana,` Dr Sangi observed.

Citing another case, he said the vice chancellor of Liaquat University of MedicalandHealthSciences was holding the post even after completion of his second tenure, which was against the rules.

Teachers also expressed concern over media reports suggesting that a proposal to hand over the chancellor`s office to the chief minister was under consideration and said that it would further compromise merit and transparency in academic and administrative matters.

`It would be a disaster if a purely political office starts serving as the chancellor.

Universities around theworld are traditionally autonomous bodies and this is why universities in Pakistan have been kept constitutionally autonomous for seven decades,` secretary general Fapuasa Sindh Dr Shakeel Faroogi said.

The demands put forward by the association were: the government must move the Sindh Assembly to squash the amendments made to the Sindh Universities Laws (Amendment) Act, 2013; appoint a full-time and committed academician as secretary of the Sindh Higher Education Commission immediately; and university grants must be awarded in proportion to the size of each university`s permanent faculty and student enrolment.

It also urged that the Higher Education Commission adopt non-discriminatory and non-partisan policies pertaining to annual grants, research grants, travel grants, etc and avoid interference in the functions of statutory bodies.