LAHORE – Following outrage, Federal Minister for Economic Affairs Ahad Cheema has refused to waive his boys’ Aitchison College tuition fees.
In a letter to Punjab Governor Balighur Rehman, Cheema refused to accept any benefit for his boys.
Cheema stated that the new policy of eliminating the price if a student was not enrolled at the college was “just, fair, equitable, and contrary to the traditional elitist mindset.”
He encouraged the governor not to rescind the new policy under any circumstances since it would benefit pupils and their parents in the future.
“I wish to convey that I do not want to avail this facility for my children, howsoever rightful I may be and just and fair the policy may be.”
The main resignation story
Aitchison College Principal Michael A Thompson resigned on Monday, citing nepotism and political meddling as grounds for his decision.
A day later, parents of some college students flocked to the streets to show their support for the principal. Several parents and former students gathered outside the Governor’s House and yelled chants demanding the reinstatement of the principal of Lahore’s premier university.
The sudden resignation of Aitchison College’s principal caught everyone off guard. His drastic move appeared to be prompted by Governor Balighur Rehman’s decision to eliminate education fees for PML-N leader Ahad Cheema’s sons.
According to media reports, Cheema’s widow had asked the Punjab governor to forgive her sons’ expenses.
The governor subsequently issued an order waiving their costs for three years.
“Politics and nepotism have no place in schools,” Thompson stated in a letter to the college faculty.
“Throughout my time as Principal, I have done my very best to protect the school’s reputation while extending compassion to those in need,” he wrote in the letter. He went on to say that “there is a crucial difference between this pursuit and blatant policy manufacturing to accommodate certain individuals because such people simply insist on preferential treatment” .
Thompson stated that “this was not how I intended to leave Aitchison.” He stated that he would step down as principal on April 1 and would not be involved in management or admissions.
Thompson also tendered his resignation in September 2018, purportedly owing to political pressure over disciplinary action taken against several students, but he later withdrew it.
