Misdeeds of VCs, teachers: President gave a message, but what's next?
President Abdul Hamid has expressed some bitter truths about the misdeeds of a section of public university vice chancellors and teachers.
The president, while addressing the 53rd convocation of Dhaka University, said a vice-chancellor's job is to supervise and develop the administrative and academic activities of a university.
"In recent times, sadly, various news reports claim that the main responsibility of some vice-chancellors is to provide jobs to family members and their loyalists, and to take administrative and financial benefits in various ways."
In the recent past, corruption and irregularities of several VCs of different public universities have hogged the headlines.
The UGC, in several cases after investigations, found that the allegations were true and recommended taking action against the vice-chancellors. But the recommendations apparently fell on deaf ears as the education ministry has so far let most of these VCs go unpunished.
By "overlooking" these allegations, the authorities concerned have sent the wrong message to the academic circles, that there is a kind of impunity associated with the position. The result is a regular recurrence of irregularities at many of the highly reputed education institutions.
These include Rajshahi University, Noakhali Science and Technology University, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Science and Technology University in Gopalganj, Begum Rokeya University in Rangpur, Khulna Agricultural University (KAU), Islamic Arabic University, and others.
Of those against whom the UGC recommended taking action, the VCs of RU, NSTU, Begum Rokeya University finished out their tenures, without receiving any punishment. Only the BSMRSTU VC resigned in September 2019, in the wake of intense protests by students.
The only actions the education ministry has taken so far is stopping the recruitment of RU and Khulna Agricultural University, after the probes found anomalies.
So how did this situation arise in the first place? The answer is simple: appointments of VCs on political considerations is one of the main reasons for such a grim picture at universities.
The Daily Star in January this year found that at least 39 out of 48 VCs of public universities have held posts in different pro-government teachers' wings during their career. Such a scenario existed during successive governments.
Until now, as per the rules of those universities, the president holds the jurisdiction to appoint a VC, but he does so following the consent of the prime minister. Give and take is the way of the country. When a party loyalist gets appointed as VC, if he or she does not give back, it is hard for them to stay at the helm of the university.
To bring back some semblance of order in the universities, mere lip service will not be enough. Only a serious change of mindset of the ruling parties is needed to stop such political appointments of VCs. The president, too, being the chancellor of all public universities, can call the shots.
The UGC prepared a Strategic Plan for Higher Education for 2006 to 2026 which recommended that the existing system of appointing VCs needed to be changed, as it left much "scope for political manoeuvring".The chancellor could form a national search committee, giving it adequate legal backing to recommend the appointment of VCs, it proposed.
It is high time that the government creates an environment that ensures appointment of prominent and honest educationists without any political affiliations as VCs. This is vital to improving the educational environment and the quality of higher education. The primary responsibility lies with the education ministry and the University Grants Commission to follow through with this much needed reform.