Appointment of teachers and doctors: no consensus formula reached yet in Sindh

The appointment of more than 750 teachers and about the same number of doctors in the Sindh government has once again been deferred for another three months as the chief minister and the respective ministers could not reach a consensus formula for appointment.
Sources on Wednesday said that Health Minister Syed Sardar Ahmed and Education Minister Dr Hamida Khuhro have communicated to Chief Minister Dr Arbab Ghulam Rahim that doctors and teachers should be selected from the areas they belong to and are willing to serve there.
The ministers have made it clear that these doctors and teachers, once posted, would not be transferred for at least three years. They would be on contract basis. Before absorbing them against any permanent vacancy their annual confidential report, performance report, and permanent stay at the place of first posting would be taken into consideration.
The ministers have made it clear to the chief minister that merit would be the sole criteria for appointments and he will have to take notice of political pressure for appointments and postings and support the minister in implementing the already decided policy.
Sources said that the chief minister is under pressure from his cabinet colleagues to accommodate their candidates without clearance from selection committees.
They said that the chief minister wants to oblige his supporters, as these are the only two areas, education and health, where job opportunities have occurred and accommodating a few here and there would go unnoticed.
The provincial health minister has to go by the dictates of his party to which the chief minister has already agreed to two months ago. However, the chief minister is reported to have once again suggested that doctors in Thatta, Badin, and Tharparkar districts be given appointment letters and posting orders with his consent.
Sources said that the health minister has not shown any inclination to accepting this suggestion. The non-acceptance of this suggestion is likely to delay appointment of all doctors awaiting appointment orders.
The differences on appointment policy of teachers between the chief minister and the education minister still continue. The chief minister would want to oblige his political colleagues across the province by giving each one of them a few vacancies of teachers despite resistance from the education minister, sources said.
Sources said that during the coming general election, these teachers would form the core support tier of the election staff and contestants would like to have their recommended teachers posted in their constituencies. "Favourable election staff in villages has always been considered as an asset," they added.
Khuhro is reported to have said that she would not let this happen in any constituency. The provincial education minister has identified 1,200 schools with insufficient staff. She wants that schools deficient in teaching staff should be equipped on priority and each teacher posted should be made to stay at the place of his/her first posting for at least three years.
Sources said that the differences in the mode of appointment and posting of teachers and doctors are not likely to settle and this would delay finalisation of appointments of doctors and teachers who have already been cleared by selection boards.