Electoral considerations for MPO facilities unacceptable

It is hoped that the concerned authorities are particular cautious in providing MPO (monthly pay order) facilities to the non-government educational institutions, including 4,706 schools and colleges, before the schedule of next parliamentary elections is announced. There is little doubt that election emotions will impact the movement of the teachers of non-government educational institutions. We want to recall a bitter experience when the incumbent government awarded MPO facilities to 1,624 non-government educational institutions in 2010. There were allegations that the conditions for improving the quality of education were not given priority. We had hoped ruling Bangladesh Awami League would have rectified the mistakes of their previous tenure and the errors of the BNP government. According to a 2006 report submitted by an high level government committee on quality and financial grants, the quality of the educational institutions brought under MPO facilities before 2006 were not satisfactory. But no initiatives were taken to rectify those mistakes. We are cautiously observing pre-poll initiatives of awarding MPO facilities to educational institutions after doing the same to 1,624 ones eight years ago.

It is to be noted that earlier we have seen a dangerous tendency of the government to place undue importance on the recommendations of the MPs of the concerned areas. For example, the MPs were asked to recommend three educational institutions from every upazila for MPO inclusion after 2010. We thank the government for suspending that initiative in the wake of criticisms. We expect the polcymakers not to tread the same path before the next elections.

Of course we welcome in principle the initiatives to bring more educational institutions under MPO facilities. But, we also want to be sure that the cautionary words of none but the finance minister AMA Muhith has been taken into cognisance.

Currently, over 500,000 teachers and officials of 27,000 non-government educational institutions are reaping benefits of MPO inclusion. The finance minister said he once visited a primary school where there were 10 teachers, but all the classes were being taken in one single room. It is important to ensure that such institutions do not get unfair advantages due to political considerations. The finance ministry was unmoved in its decision not to allocate money for this despite the non-government teachers’ demonstrations and fasting unto death staged across the country for over two years. But the education minister told parliament on 16 September that the finance ministry has agreed to allocate the money, though the amount is yet to be settled. Quality of education is the first priority to bring schools under MPO facilities. There has to be a coordination in location and ratio of people as well. It is not expected that some upazilas and districts will receive more educational institutions with MPO facilities while some others do not have enough.

In the context of the hunger strike by several hundred teachers in December last year, prime minister Sheikh Hasina issued a statement in parliament on 4 July about improving the quality of education. But at this preparatory stage of bringing new institutions under MPO facilities at the cost of Tk 20 billion, the government and teachers should not forget that there has been insignificant improvement in the overall quality of education in the country.