‘An interference of bureaucracy’
Public university teachers have demanded cancellation of the appointment of a former additional secretary as treasurer of Bangamata Sheikh Fojilatunnesa Mujib Science and Technology University in Jamalpur.
In separate press statements, Federation of Bangladesh University Teachers' Association (FBUTA), Dhaka University Teachers' Association (DUTA), Jahangirnagar University Teachers' Association (JUTA) and Jagannath University Teachers' Association (JnUTA) also demanded revision of the corresponding law that allows people other than teachers to be appointed as public university treasurers.
FBUTA secretary general Prof Nizamul Hoque Bhuiyan said they will hold a press conference on Tuesday noon and give the government a seven-day ultimatum to cancel the appointment.
He said FBUTA will also announce new programmes from the press conference.
Former additional secretary Abdul Mannan was appointed treasurer of the university, with the approval of President Abdul Hamid, also the chancellor of universities, said a Secondary and Higher Education Division gazette notification issued on May 5.
Demanding cancellation of the appointment and revision of the relevant law, DUTA yesterday said appointing a former additional secretary to a top position of a public university goes against the tradition and is part of a long-term plan aiming to appoint more bureaucrats in the universities.
In a state, definition of work and it's purview of work is different for each profession. Appointing a different professional at one of the top administrative positions of a university may create chaos in the administration and state, the statement said.
Meanwhile, JUTA on Friday night said they have observed that bureaucrats were trying to intervene in higher studies and such an appointment was the outcome of that.
JnUTA on the same day said such an appointment was an "intervention of bureaucracy on public universities".
AKM Aftab Hossain Pramanik, additional secretary of Secondary and Higher Education Division, on Thursday said the appointment was made in line with the law of the university. "There is no clause that only a teacher will be a university treasurer."
He refused to comment on the teachers' concern against the decision.
A top education ministry official said the university was established in 2018 and it was upgraded from an agriculture college.
"So, the authorities did not find any well qualified person among the university teachers to appoint him as treasurer. They thought as many administrative works of the university are incomplete, an experienced administrative person will help them do the job," the official said.
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