PM bans police deployment in Islamabad schools, exempts teachers from non-teaching duties
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has imposed a complete ban on housing police and security personnel in Islamabad’s government schools and colleges, and directed that teachers must not be given any duty other than teaching.
Schools are for education, nothing else
Chairing a meeting on the capital’s education sector recently, the prime minister said schools existed to impart education and teachers were there to teach children — so there was no justification for putting school buildings to any other use in the name of handling a law and order situation. “School premises and buildings shall not be occupied by law enforcement agencies for any purpose,” he said.
After the meeting, the Prime Minister’s Office sent written instructions to the Ministry of Education, and on Wednesday the ministry conveyed the decisions to Islamabad’s district administration and police. In its letter, the ministry said the premises, buildings, classrooms and other facilities of schools and colleges run by the Federal Directorate of Education must not be occupied, used or handed over to any law enforcement agency — not as temporary camps, not to house personnel, and not as detention facilities.
Teachers freed from election and census duties
The letter added that teachers would no longer be required to perform administrative duties, including election duties, census work and household surveys. Any such duties already assigned must be cancelled immediately. The letter was addressed to the chief commissioner Islamabad, the CDA chairman, the inspector general of police, the interior secretary and the director general of the FDE.
Thousands of students paid the price the last time this happened. In September, 38 public-sector schools and colleges in the capital were closed for between one and three weeks to accommodate police personnel ahead of the PTI’s anticipated protest march. The shifting of personnel into educational institutions had begun on 24 September, three days before the scheduled rally. The schools were reopened once the situation was brought under control and governor’s rule was imposed in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
A federal government officer welcomed the decision, saying it was illogical to close schools and colleges to house police personnel, and that teachers had been demanding exemption from election, census and other duties for years — a demand the prime minister has now accepted.
