Politicians 'out', govt officials 'in' as presidents of school managing committees

Government officials have started taking charge as presidents of managing committees in private educational institutions. On Monday (1 December), the government appointed presidents to 215 such institutions in the capital in one go, marking the beginning of the process to exclude political figures.

The interim government had earlier taken a policy decision to include government officials in these positions.

Teachers and employees of educational institutions, along with conscious citizens and guardians, have expressed satisfaction over the move. However, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) has opposed the interim government’s widely discussed decision, citing various reasons, including that it would hinder election-related work.

Although a circular on managing committees had already been issued by the government, it was stayed due to legal complications, leaving the entire matter in considerable uncertainty. Despite this, the government has finally proceeded with forming committees headed by officials, overcoming all concerns.

Principal Delawar Hossain Azizi, member secretary of the MPO-Enlisted Education Nationalisation Aspiring Alliance, told The Daily Campus that private schools and colleges should remain free from political influence, just like government institutions.

“The initiative taken by the interim government has brought joy to everyone,” he said, calling for keeping educational institutions free from political criminalisation.

A related circular was issued on 16 November by the Private Secondary-1 Branch of the Secondary and Higher Education Division under the Ministry of Education, in line with Clause 69 of the Governing Body and Managing Committee Regulations 2024 for non-government educational institutions under the Secondary and Higher Secondary Education Board, Dhaka and other boards.

The circular further stated that a previous directive issued on 8 September by the Secondary and Higher Education Division regarding formation of ad-hoc and regular committees under the 2024 regulations (with amendments) had been stayed for three months by the High Court Division in Writ Petition No. 16757/2015.

It is learned that the interim government, formed through the student-worker-people uprising, has constituted various reform commissions, including six major ones, to implement public aspirations. These commissions have submitted reform proposals to the government.

One of the proposals was to constitute managing committees of colleges and secondary schools with government officials. Under this, the Secondary and Higher Education Division will send the policy on managing committee formation to the Ministry of Public Administration for vetting; the ministry will return it after vetting; the division will then issue it; and reconstitution of managing committees in colleges and secondary schools must be completed within one month of the policy’s issuance.