Daily Times

I am grateful to the editor for the opportunity for an early response to the Daily Times Perspective article of May 7th, 2020. The article raises a number of issues, which appear as follows: that I am a foreign national, that I come with no experience, and that I appear too often in the social media. As a result, the article seems to imply that I am trivialising the role of VC, and that there has been a detriment in the performance of key functions.

On the issue of my nationality, let me just start by saying that I was born in Multan, and am a proud alumnus of GC University Lahore (1983-84), and after that Quaid-I-Azam University Islamabad (1985-86). I am a Pakistani, who also holds a Dutch nationality.

I have been working at institutions worldwide from 1990 onwards, most recently as a Professor of Social Gerontology at the Seoul National University, a public university in Korea ranked 36 in the World QS Ranking 2019, and as a Senior Research Fellow at Oxford Institute of Population Ageing, University of Oxford, another university among the top ranked universities of the world. It was from this background that I was honoured to be offered the post of Vice-Chancellor of GCU Lahore, and I’m proud to have come back to Pakistan and serve my alma mater.

At the other end of the spectrum there is the coronavirus pandemic, which has had huge impacts on the University, its staff and students and their families. I joined in with GCU staff to respond to the crisis in as public, vocal and visual a fashion as possible

I humbly suggest that being chosen above the other 200 candidates for the role by a selection panel of the most esteemed educationists and leaders of Punjab’s higher education is enough evidence of fitness for the role. Since joining, I have felt nothing but pride and importance of participating in the life of the University and offering my services to this great institution. I consider that my experience in multiple sectors across the world has prepared me for this role at GCU Lahore.

Since October 2019, I have engaged openly with students and colleagues and used social media platforms to communicate with the wider student population. The article suggests that I should be doing other, more important, things like governance, transparency, financial sustainability, etc.

Of course, the VC role is a mixture of operational, strategic and leadership roles, and I can assure the readership that these functions are being discharged – at many levels – to the best of my capabilities. It is important to remember that the implementation of strategic change is not something that happens overnight. Such changes happen more slowly over time – it’s perhaps for this reason that my initial appointment is for 4 years.

I can provide reassurances to all those interested in GCU that I am addressing issues at several levels on a daily basis. When appointed in October 2019, I set out the five key strategic priorities for the university and these can be found on the GCU website.

Your readers must also know that during the first week in my office, I was welcomed with a breaking news of billions of rupees alleged corruption scandal of 10 years back at GCU’s Abdus Salam School of Mathematical Sciences. I am also handling these issues with the government investigation agencies.

Regarding the social media criticism, I consider that part of my role is to be the face of the university to all involved with it. The article represents them as an ego trip. I disagree wholeheartedly. My role includes promoting the work and development of the University and this year has seen many developments which merited celebration. These include: hosting the annual convocation, reporting approval of funding for the Kala Shah Kaku (KSK) campus, organising the opening ceremony of the University Sports League, revamping the website after 17 years, etc.

A series of other criticisms are related to operational issues which are part of the University’s business and not suitable for commentary here. There is however one issue that is particularly incorrect and injurious – that I have taken occupation of the Day Care Centre building and (by implication) deprived it of a location to conduct its operations.

At the other end of the spectrum there is the coronavirus pandemic, which has had huge impacts on the University, its staff and students and their families. I joined in with GCU staff to respond to the crisis in as public, vocal and visual a fashion as possible. Our efforts have resulted in such different outcomes as establishing a quarantine centre and field hospital at our new KSK campus, providing sanitizers and disinfectants from our Chemistry Department, the setting up of the Punjab Mental Health Helpline, and extensive use of social media platforms (Twitter, Facebook, WhatsApp) to raise awareness about the virus impact to the wider population.

Holding responsible a Vice Chancellor who joined few months ago for no research on COVID-19 at GCU is also unfair. I inherited this faculty and resources for research so that there is not a single Bio-Safety Level 3 lab in the University which has history of more than 150 years. Within the little time, I have started activating research chairs lying vacant in different departments of the University for the last many decades. Also, I have secured a funding from HEC to establish new laboratories and departments at the new campus of GCU.

In short, my role is to raise the profile of the university and I consider that social media activities continue to present the university in its best light, whether in celebration or in response to grave crisis.

In conclusion, I thank once again the editor for his allocation of space to respond to the article.

The writer is the Vice Chancellor of GC University Lahore