Gross irregularities and technical flaws were witnessed in the recently conducted tests for recruitment of teachers through a private testing agency in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK). According to official sources in KP Education Department, an agreement was signed between the department and a private recruitment agency - Fair Testing Services (FTS) - for appointment of teachers of different categories including Secondary School Teacher (SST), Certified Teachers (CT), Primary School Teachers (PST), Physical Education Teachers (PET), Theology Teachers (TT) and Drawing Master (DM) with the objective of ensuring transparency and merit.
Informed sources told this correspondent that the testing system supported by the agency has proved to be "flawed" as gross irregularities, technical mistakes in questions, poor arrangements and lack of control were witnessed in the tests conducted for the posts of PET and TT teachers. The officials privy to the development said that during the recent tests conducted for PET and TT teachers, the multiple-choice questions (MCQs) were prepared in which some of the questions had either two options or four, but none of the answers contain the exact answer of the questions.
This was confirmed by a number of candidates to Business Recorder on condition of anonymity that they noted a number of mistakes in the question papers. The recruitment agency accepted its mistake and cancelled the papers for SST Math/Physics scheduled to be held the next day due to technical mistakes, sources said, adding that the testing agency had no remedy for the candidates who had already appeared in the test for PET and TT posts.
They further said that if the government cancels the tests earlier held then there is a need to compensate for the wasted time and money of the applicants. "If government did not cancel the test, then how can it claim to have recruited qualified teachers," officials further said. Sources said that the recruitment agency also deprived a number of competent applicants of appearing in the test by not sending roll number on their given address.
A candidate from Peshawar said that he did not appear in the test because he did not receive his roll number slip, adding that one of his relatives visited the office of the concerned recruitment agency in Islamabad to obtain the roll number slip in person but upon reaching there he was informed that no office existed there. He said that he made several attempts to call on the phone number available on the concerned recruiting agency's website but there was no response.
Applicants also accused top government officials of being hand in glove with "dubious" testing agency personnel in a bid to appoint their kith and kin through these flawed tests. They added that PET tests were held in tents in hot weather where even pedestal fans were not provided and claimed massive mismanagement and cheating during the test.
The candidates have demanded that the government must take action against those government officials who signed the agreement with the testing agency without evaluating its capacity and strength. Another candidate from Swabi said that despite mentioning it in the form that he belonged to Swabi district, his examination centre was allotted in district Swat due to which he missed the test.
Another candidate claimed that candidates were using cell phones while attempting questions during the exam but the invigilators did not bother to warn any candidate against use of cellular phone. When contacted, Ziaullah Bangash, Advisor to Chief Minister on Education, said that he has also received complaints from different districts and sought an explanation from the concerned department and recruiting agency.
Bangash denied the allegation that senior management awarded the contract as a favour to his own constituents in the education department. He said that he has no relative in Swabi and Mardan etc. When questioned on the phone about compensating the candidates who faced hardship and lost an opportunity for a job he disconnected the line. No one from FTS picked up the phone despite repeated attempts on their office number given on their website.