In recent years, many issues have been raised in different institutions of Balochistan, regarding governance, the poor state of law and appointments on merit. However, the recent incident of harassment in which the University Management seemed to be involved outstripped every previous issue. This event saddened me as an alumnus because I can’t compare the present disgrace of the University with my nostalgic memories of the studentship in the late 1990s. I can easily recall those beautiful days although being a student of economics, I often used to visit the extraordinary department of fine arts established by Jamal Shah, a stream passing through the middle of the university and an arch-shaped bridge connecting the main library with the rest of the university. Bed of roses here and there in university and of course, the liveliest part of university was its garden canteen. I can’t recall single military personnel in the University. However, the performance of Atan (provincial dance) by male students was a usual thing at the main courtyard. All above, there was a long list of notable alumni.
Without going far past, the air of the University started changing after the murder of Nawab Akber Bugti in 2006. The anger was revealed in many ways in the province. A leading newspaper reported on June 7, 2010, “The teaching profession has enjoyed much respect by the masses in traditional Baloch society. It is a recent and surprising phenomenon that political revenge has picked on teachers as targets. Many killed, and many migrated to different parts of the country or even out of the country; among them were several educationists who made important contributions in their fields.”
From this time to date, the university has become more like a cantonment. Military forces are using the University as their base camp to keep law and order situation in the province and also to protect the province at the border of Afghanistan and Iran. I would like to mention that harassment is not limited to unethical filming of the students but also complicated security procedures are a source of harassment for innocent students at the university’s entrance. The youth of Balochistan has every right to ask for educational institutions with a healthy environment rather than suffocating jail cells.
The youth of Balochistan has every right to ask for educational institutions with a healthy environment
Another issue with public-sector universities is that the HEC failed to appoint Vice-Chancellors on merit. The role of VC is very challenging in the modern world. He/she is supposed to set an inspiring vision, but also to design a sound strategy to achieve the set goals. The VC should be held responsible for admissions and recruitments on merit, academic and research excellence, and “wellbeing” of students and staff. He/she should have the capability to arrange/manage financial resources for expansion in university or complete the projects of any nature. Unfortunately, the HEC failed to identify and appoint professionals of this calibre, thus we shouldn’t be surprised by the present distressing situation of our public sector universities. The Vice-Chancellor should make sure to provide an incredible lifetime chance for students to transform their lives and their communities, but sadly, students are murdered, tortured and harassed at our public-sector universities.
The struggle to recruit faculty and staff on merit continued during the last two decades but terribly failed every time. Different methods have been suggested and opted like National Testing Service (NTS) but still, the merit remained questionable. Many departments in the UoB do not have adequate staff. Those recruited are mostly based on favouritism and nepotism. Many scholarship schemes, for instance, Aghaz-i-Haqooqe Balochistan were wasted because of extremely poor governance. The youth of Balochistan has been struggling with all these problems for years. The incident of sexual harassment has trumped all earlier issues. No doubt, the youth of the largest province of Pakistan deserves better opportunities and cultured learning settings.
The writer is Associate Professor at Institute of Business Administration, Karachi