BISE Corrupt mafia
Lahore: Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education (BISE) employees demanded on Monday that the government replace the staff of the organisation's computer section ahead of the upcoming intermediate examination, as "corrupt officials in the section are all set to engineer the exam results", It is learned.
The senior employees alleged that certain BISE officials were working "under the supervision of a corrupt mafia, with a computer programmer, Waheedur Rahman, protecting the corrupt officials". They said Waheed had "close association with the corrupt mafia ... although various quarters have expressed concern, the BISE chairman and the controller are hesitant to take action against him". They said Waheed was responsible for a "major mistake" in last year's intermediate results, and "while the matter was brought to the attention of BISE Chairman Akram Kashmiri, he is working in the same section".
The officials said the government was not taking notice of the corruption in the BISE. They said the corrupt officials in the computer section were "expert in tampering with the exams results".
According to a senior official, the future of around 265,000 students is at stake, as those working for the mafia may get away with "rigging of the highest order". He said the government apparently had no authority to take notice of BISE affairs. He said BISE employees were helpless, as they could lose their jobs if they raised the issue. The also lamented that while corruption in matriculation exams had been reported by the media, no action had been taken against those responsible. "Even if there are plans to take action against the corrupt officials, the mafia steps in to protect them ... the mafia now has presence at BISE's intermediate branch".
He alleged that Waheed, the computer programmer responsible for operating BISE's entire computer system, was "a member of that mafia". He said while the programmer was "punished" last year for not including in the results list the candidate who secured the third position, "the man is still the head of the intermediate branch".
Another official alleged that Waheed had links with senior BISE officials, and "this is the reason he cannot be replaced". He said BISE's computer system had not been upgraded – the reason for a number of blunders in the past. Citing an example, he said arts subjects such as Islamiat and Pakistan Studies had been categorised as subjects with practicals in the system. He said the matter had been highlighted in the past, but no action had been taken. He said the BISE spent millions of rupees for the development of the computer programme, but "the money will continue going down the drain if the corrupt officials are not eliminated".
Another BISE official said the intermediate branch's computerised system had lost its credibility. He said the bugs in the software had been brought to the attention of the chairman, but the matter had not been resolved further and the corrupt officials not replaced. He said the must take action against the mafia operating within the BISE, as "these corrupt officials are bring the board into disrepute".
Waheed rejected the allegations against him, and said there was no room for corruption at his department. He said while the BISE cancelled his increments after an inquiry last year, the entire staff was responsible for the mistake. He put down the mistake as a technical error, and rejected the allegations against him. BISE Chairman Akram Kashmiri said the board was spending "a lot of money on developing our computer section, and hiring the services of foreign companies". Daily times
