Interim Government’s bid to approve National Education Policy Opposed

February 01, 2008

Consumer Rights Commission of Pakistan (CRCP) has strongly opposed the interim government’s bid to approve the draft National Education Policy. It has expressed concern that approval of the policy by a caretaker government is likely to serve the vested interests and would lack credibility and ownership. The interim government has decided to accord approval to the revised draft policy on February 4 just two weeks before the general elections, which is against the democratic norms, CRCP said.

During the tenure of previous elected government, the Federal Ministry of Education undertook a review process to revise the National Education Policy 1998-2010 through consultations with key stakeholders. A revised draft policy was developed in 2007. The draft, however, was not approved because it could not be presented to the cabinet for discussion. As a result, it could not be put before the Parliament for debate as well. Intensive inputs have gone into education policy in a long consultative process, which would reflect consensus and credibility only if it is approved by the elected government, says a statement issued by CRCP.

CRCP has said that the task of caretaker government is to run the routine business and ensure transparency in elections. It does not have the necessary mandate from the public to enforce such a crucial policy in absence of an elected parliament. The secretary general of CRCP, Mian Abrar Hafeez said that the interim government is overstepping its conventional mandate by taking crucial policy decisions with far reaching implications.

He regretted that the caretaker government has reversed the decision of an elected government by changing the academic session. The previous government had notified academic session from August to May, whereas the present caretaker government has undone this decision by granting approval of session from April with summer vacations falling within the session. The secretary general of CRCP said that nowhere in the world do the interim governments reverse major decisions of elected governments or take on the responsibility of enforcing major policies. The role expected from them is to manage the affairs of the government on day-to-day basis until new government is elected through free and fair elections, he said.

CRCP has urged the interim government, especially the Interim Minister for Education, to reserve the approval of draft National Education Policy for the next elected government. It has stressed that the revised draft must be approved only after proper debate in the elected Parliament after the elections.