F.P. Report
TIMERGARA: The management cadre officials of elementary and secondary education department Lower Dir on Thursday observed complete pen down strike against the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government for not accepting their demand of posts’ up gradation.
The male and female officials of the management cadre boycotted their duties and staged a protest sit-in in front of the district education officer’s office Balambat. The All Pakistan Clerks Association (APCA) also announced full support for the protesting officials. They chanted slogans for acceptance of their demand of posts’ up gradation. Dozens of visitors to the DEO and SDEOs offices mainly government schools’ teachers were suffered due to the protest.
Speaking on the occasion deputy district education officer Muhammad Riaz, assistant district officer Ali Haidar and others alleged the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government and high ups of education department were not fulfilling their promise made with officials of the management cadre. They said they had been serving in the same scale for the last seven years without any service structure.
The speakers said that teachers and clerks working under their subordination had been upgraded. They demanded one step up gradation of their posts with immediate effect and warned to continue their protest until their demand was accepted. They also announced that management cadre officers would participate in the proposed protest rally in front of the KP assembly on Jan, 15. The APCA Lower Dir president Muhammad Shaier Tajak and general secretary Muhammad Salim on the occasion announced their support for the protesting officers and said the government should accept their demand.
Also in the day the All Sub engineers association continued its protest for the third consecutive day against the government for not up grading their posts. The sub engineers in Lower Dir observed pen down strike on the call of provincial president of the association Malik Bashir Ahmad. They set up a protest camp at Timergara and wore black arm bands. The protesters were addressed by Malik Bashir Ahmad, provincial vice president Nimatullah Marwat, divisional president Akhtar Hussain and presidents of Mardan, Kohat, Bannu, DI Khan and Lukky Marwat.
They said the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa had up graded more than 75000 government employees but ub engineers were not up graded despite promises. They said that the PTI chief Imran Khan and KP Chief Minister Pervez Khattak had promised them to upgrade all sub engineers working in various departments but to no avail. They announced to gather the sub engineers at Bani Gala on Jan, 15 in front of the PTI chief Imran Khan’s house.
Meanwhile the Lower Dir nazim Muhammad Rasool Khan also visited the protest camo of sub engineers and said their demand was genuine. The protesters announced to continue their strike for indefinite time.
