Girl students in Landikotal demanded staff for their school

LANDIKOTAL: Girls students of a Government-run school in Pirokhel Landikotal  staged a protest and demanded of the Agency Education Officer(AEO) to provide them teaching staff and other necessary education materials lacking in the school since it was converted from Communal to a regular school last year.

 Raqeemullah, the property owner of the school, led the protest said the school building has been completed in 2009 but so far staff was not provided. He alleged that AAEO Nawaz Khan had demanded Rs02 million from him as bribe for regularization of the school.He said he was a poor man and could not afford to pay him such amount.

The (GGCS) girl students staged protest at the front of Landikotal press club and chanted slogans against the Agency Education Officer. They were holding banners and placards inscribed with the slogans against the alleged corruption involved in the delay of provision of teaching staff to their school. 

The innocent girls students said that they were coming to the schools since last several when it was been run as communal schools. They said the government has already approved the conversion of the school as regular and budget was also sanctioned to for it. They alleged that Education officials intentionally not providing them teachers and other equipments to regulate and seek formal education in the schools.

Assistant Agency Education Officer (AAEO) Nawaz Khan  Afridi when contacted he said that they had sent the case to Fata Secretariate for further orders. He rejected such allegations leveled on him and said that 48 files of same kind of the schools have forwarded to Fata Secretariat in 2011 but they did not returned them so far for further action.

Nawaz said though they have announced the regularization of the GGCS Inayatullah Killay but it was not their mandate to sanction staff to it. He said the vacant posts in the schools would be filled after  concerned department in Fata Secretariat issue them a written notification to the Agency Education Office. 

“The matter was brought into the notice of AEO several times  he could not resolved it so far” Raqim accused. and added the school was closed for many times which hundreds of girls from poor families to seek education.

The protesting girls demanded of the concern authorities to take notice of the corrupt officials in the Khyber Agency education office. They also demanded for the early provision of teaching staff so that they could continue their education on time.