Fake Degrees Scandal

[sparklingway]

Minister wants disqualification of fake degree holders

Friday, July 09, 2010
By our correspondent

ISLAMABAD: A member of Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani’s cabinet, in an unprecedented move, sought disqualification of parliamentarians or even ministers if they had made false statement of assets or had fake degrees to qualify for elections, The News learnt here on Thursday.

Minister for Science and Technology Muhammad Azam Khan Swati, in a letter to Secretary Election Commission Ishtiak Ahmad Khan, also called for strict observance of Article 63-C, concerning dual nationality. The article says a parliamentarian should not be a citizen of any other country.

A copy of the letter with this correspondent, says: “We must consider the Election Commission as an effective oversight on candidates opting to represent the people of this country. They must display their moral authority and adhere to the election law as well as the Constitution.”

When approached, the minister confirmed to have dispatched a letter to the electoral body and emphasised that the Election Commission should be in no doubt about those guilty of making false statements of accounts. The fake degree holders should not be spared, he added.

“Those who make their way to parliament or provincial legislatures on the basis of telling lies or provide wrong information to the people or the electoral body, must face life ban on the right to represent public,” Swati said.

Replying to a question, he made it clear that the elected representatives should present themselves as role model before the masses and said corruption was rampant in the society because heads of organisations were not performing as they were supposed to.

“If a head of the state and head of the government perform as per aspirations of the masses, the menace of corruption would hardly find any place in our institutions,” Swati said. In this context, he referred to Pashto poet Rehman Baba, who had said the roots of corruption were always on the top of a tree and not at the bottom.

“You cannot fight or root out corruption by punishing merely a watchman or a constable. You will have to hold accountable those who matter. What kind of austerity you can expect from others, when you as a minister have a fleet of 15-16 vehicles under your use,” Swati said.

Answering another question, the minister said that unfortunately, he foresaw the state institutions doomed because of the governments’ poor performance in the past and also blamed the present set-up for the mess.

About the letter he wrote to the EC secretary, the minister said the Article 63-C, concerning dual nationality must be implemented in its true spirit. Swati himself had renounced his American nationality to fulfil the constitutional requirement. But he regretted many in parliament still had dual nationality completely against the spirit of the Constitution and they never felt sorry about it.

 

[sparklingway]

Your name, my name, your degree, my degree​

By Hafeez Tunio

July 10, 2010

The highlighted roll number shows two degrees using the same seat number. The highlighted name below shows how Chawala changed his surname...​

KARACHI: Fake-degree fever has spread to Sindh. While some people maintain that parliamentarians have bought degrees from university administrations others allege that the legislators are simply using degrees belonging to people with the same name as them.

The case of Sindh Minister for Excise and Taxation Mukesh Kumar Chawala falls somewhere in between. He was given a seat reserved for minorities in the Sindh Assembly.

According to official sources, Chawala belongs to Kashmore district and has been living in Karachi. However, according to his degree, which he submitted for the 2008 elections, he studied in a college in Thatta district under the Hyderabad Board as an external student.

“His Master’s degree, which he had submitted to the Election Commission, is genuine but his undergraduate degree is counterfeit,” sources alleged, thereby indicating that the minister had acquired his Master’s degree on the basis of a fake Bachelors.

The undergraduate degree had been bought off a man with the same name and the same father’s name as Chawala. The only difference was the surname Bansari, which did not prove to be much of a hurdle in the degree transactions, sources added.

Photocopies of the two degrees with the same seat number, 10444, have been obtained by The Express Tribune. They show that the BA examination forms have different photographs, one bearing that of Mukesh Kumar son of Baghawandas Bansari in Thatta and the other of the minister, Chawala. Other than that, details on the forms are almost identical, the only difference being that Chawala wrote down his first name as Mukesh Kumar Chawala and his surname as Bansari, exchanging his actual surname Chawala with his namesake’s surname. Chawala and Bansari are two separate families of the Hindu community.

“Later, on the basis of this [Bachelor’s degree] he did his masters from Sindh University in 2006,” said Amar Lal, a petitioner who had challenged Chawala’s degree in the election tribunal and Sindh High Court.

Lal said that due to financial constraints neither could he pursue the case nor could he hire a senior lawyer to fight it. As a result, both of the degrees were declared genuine and verified on December 12, 2007 by the election tribunal.

Talking to The Express Tribune, second-time MPA Mukesh Kumar Chawala said that these allegations were part of a conspiracy against him. All my degrees are genuine, he said.

When asked why he did his Bachelors and Masters degrees from Thatta when he lived in Kashmore, he replied, “Because my uncle Arjandas Chawala lives in Thatta, I graduated from there. The election tribunal has declared the degree genuine. There is no reason to call my degrees fake.” According to Chawala, all his education was carried out in Thatta because his uncle’s family lived there.

However, Dileep Kumar Kewalramani of the Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid, who belongs to Chawala’s area, said that no member of the Chawala family lives in Thatta. “Since his degrees are counterfeit, we will now take this case to the Supreme Court in order to expose his fraud,” he added.

Publsihed in The Express Tribune, July 10th, 2010.

 

[sparklingway]

Acting like an ***
​

July 11, 2010

Protesters parade a herd of 'fake degree' donkeys through the streets​

KHANEWAL: A unique protest was held in the district against politicians implicated of carrying fake degrees.

Locals placed fake degrees they had printed out on charts in the necks of a herd of donkeys and walked through the streets as crowds swelled to witness the scene. The walk began at the Khanewal press club and ended at the Sanglanwala chowk and the rally was initiated and presided over by local leader Sheikh Aftab Qureshi. Several journalists and influential locals also attended the rally. Over a dozen donkeys were paraded throughout the city. Participants stated that the purpose of the rally was to publicly denounce the Punjab Assembly’s motion to curb media freedom.

“The politicians are unwilling to admit their own fault and are blaming the media for exposing their behavior. They are acting like donkeys and so we thought this was the best form of getting the message across,” Qureshi said. “We are just showing them their reflection in the mirror,” he said.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 11th, 2010.

 

[SSGPA1]

Those who deliberately forged degrees from various institutions, however, committed crimes and should be removed from their positions and tried and punished under the applicable laws.

I just wanted to quote this para again for those who think that there is a game going on or a certain party is targeted etc.

 

[alibaz]

The sad thing about this whole sorry affair is that this country desperately needs an assembly to complete its whole term, just for democracy to take root and for people to get used to democratic rules and traditions.

Unfortunately its looking impossible at the moment. I don't see this government completing its term.

And we have Nawaz Gunjoo waiting in the wings, lucky us....

Yes you are right, we have an example i.e. PML(Q) government was voted out after completing their tenure and we badly need to repeat this practice at least twice or thrice so that this nation gets used to it. Secondly no party should be able to get a sympathy vote for being victim of any Amar.
And just wait for another two three months, this Ganju scoundrel will start move for mid term elections to grab power cause he is eagerly waiting for Dec 2010

 

[pak-marine]

Degree record of parliamentarians missing from PU
By Online / Express
July 11, 2010


Lawmakers include four MNAs, three senators and seven MPAs

A number of degrees belonging to parliamentarians sent to Punjab University for verification have been found missing, sources stated on Sunday.

The degrees of as many as 313 parliamentarians were sent to the Punjab University, out of which 200 degrees have been verified while the record of some of the degrees has been found missing.

Vice Chancellor Dr Mujahid Kamran called an emergency meeting of the inquiry committee and ordered an investigation into the matter.

14 parliamentarians hold fake degrees

The Higher Education Commission (HEC) on Saturday confirmed that the graduation degrees of 14 parliamentarians were forged and submitted a report to a parliamentary committee in this regard.

These parliamentarians include four federal lawmakers, three senators, three members of the Balochistan Assembly and two members each from Punjab and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa assemblies.

The commission also recorded its reasons for declaring the degrees bogus.

Five of the parliamentarians, including two federal ministers, have obtained degrees from foreign universities, which are seen as non-chartered institutions. Among the five, one Shama Parveen Magsi, a deputy of Balochistan Assembly, had secured a BBA degree from the ‘International University of America’ in London which “is not a chartered university”. Another Balochistan Assembly member Robina Zafar Zehri, had filed a BBA degree awarded by ‘My Tech Institute of Management and Information Technology, Lahore, which is also unrecognised by the HEC.

The BBA degree held by the federal minister for livestock, Mir Hummayun Aziz Kurd, was issued by ‘Air International University’ and the BBA degree held by federal Minister for Postal Services Sanaullah Zehri was awarded by the ‘International University of America’ in London. Both of them have been declared bogus by the HEC. The BSc degree which federal lawmaker Mazhar Hayat is said to have obtained from the ‘Winona State University’ in the US was pronounced a fraud by the university itself.

Other parliamentarians whose degrees were declared to be bogus included Syed Muhammad Suleman Mohsin, MNA, Wasim Afzal Gondal, member of Punjab Assembly, Samina Khawar Hayat and Senator Nawabzada Muhammad Akbar.

The Shah Abdul Latif Bhittai University said that it had abrogated the degree presented by Nawabzada Muhammad Akbar on July 7 this year. The HEC also placed members of assemblies on the list of fake degree holders who obtained degrees from unregistered madaris. They are Abdul Samad of Balochistan Assembly, Abdul Qayyum Khan and Gulistan Khan of Khyber-Pakhtunkhawa Assembly, Syed Javed Hussain MNA and Senator Wali Muhammad Badini. They had filed their degrees which they said they had obtained from Ittehadul Madaris and other religious seminaries but the HEC has not accepted them as genuine. Meanwhile, the University of Punjab has returned copies of eight degrees to the HEC, declaring them legible. ONLINE

Published in The Express Tribune, July 11th, 2010.

This is insane now the records of 200 degrees are missing , looks like we have been represented by not just Juhalas all these times

 

[khuramonline]

Acting like an ***
​

July 11, 2010

Protesters parade a herd of 'fake degree' donkeys through the streets​

KHANEWAL: A unique protest was held in the district against politicians implicated of carrying fake degrees.

Locals placed fake degrees they had printed out on charts in the necks of a herd of donkeys and walked through the streets as crowds swelled to witness the scene. The walk began at the Khanewal press club and ended at the Sanglanwala chowk and the rally was initiated and presided over by local leader Sheikh Aftab Qureshi. Several journalists and influential locals also attended the rally. Over a dozen donkeys were paraded throughout the city. Participants stated that the purpose of the rally was to publicly denounce the Punjab Assembly’s motion to curb media freedom.

“The politicians are unwilling to admit their own fault and are blaming the media for exposing their behavior. They are acting like donkeys and so we thought this was the best form of getting the message across,” Qureshi said. “We are just showing them their reflection in the mirror,” he said.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 11th, 2010.

Fake Degree Donkey! ... Then authentic degree horse or goat...???

 

[Tayyab1796]

a donkey is much better then a 'fake degree holder' ... I protest because a donkey works very hard for his master alll day , thereby earning bread and butter for his master n his family whereas these Frauds n cheats only fool and cheat people and country ....'fake degree *****'

 

[DaRk WaVe]

here comes the Master of Laws in Quran....

Status of Babar Awan’s alma mater in doubt​

WASHINGTON: The university from where Law Minister Babar Awan claims to have done his PhD is banned in the United States from issuing any degree and cannot even claim that it is a legal educational institution.

Long before the dispute over fake degrees became a political issue in Pakistan, the Circuit Court of the First Circuit in the State of Hawaii, declared that the University of Monticello was a non-recognised and non-chartered university.

The university previously claimed that it was based in Hawaii, which prompted the court to issue this order (No. 99-2769-07) on March 13, 2000.

The court banned the university from “representing, directly or by implication, that they offer real learning, real achievement, real recognition, real accreditation, real degrees and real value”.

The Monticello University is also banned from “representing, directly or by implication, that they have staff, faculty and personnel”.

The court also ordered Mr Awan’s alma mater from claiming “directly or by implication, that Monticello is a legally qualified, non-profit, degree-granting institution of higher education, in the State of South Dakota and Hawaii, and that its degrees have the legal status as degrees from any other legally-qualified American university”.

The Monticello University and other institutions associated with it, and their agents, employees and successors, directly or indirectly, individually or in concert with others, or through any corporate or other device, were permanently enjoined from: “Publishing, printing or disseminating any advertising, catalogues, promotional materials and/or written contracts for instructions” and from “representing, directly or by implication, that they are accredited in any fashion or that they operate under the laws or authority of the State.”

The university was also prevented from claiming that it had other member schools. The Monticello group was also forbidden from claiming that major international companies approve or endorse degrees from them.

They were ordered not to claim that Monticello “complies with all local, city, county, municipal, state and federal regulations”.

The Monticello University was ordered to declare that it does “utilise erroneous or misleading advertising”.

The Monticello group was also ordered to disclose that only one individual was responsible for all operations of nine schools: Locke School of Management, Roosevelt School of Public Administration, Churchill School of History & Government, DeTocqueviIle School of Educational Policy and Leadership, Franklin School of Social Sciences, Kennedy School of Criminal Justice, Dag Hammarskjold School of Diplomacy & International Studies, King’s College & Seminary and Monticello University School of Law.

The same individual was also responsible for teaching 425 courses in 14 separate disciplines.

The Monticello University was also ordered not to hide that it was not approved by the American Bar Association and that its degree holders were not qualified to sit for the bar examination in most states.

DAWN.COM | Front Page | Status of Babar Awan?s alma mater in doubt

 

[khuramonline]

a donkey is much better then a 'fake degree holder' ... I protest because a donkey works very hard for his master alll day , thereby earning bread and butter for his master n his family whereas these Frauds n cheats only fool and cheat people and country ....'fake degree *****'

But ... a donkey and an 'authentic' degree holder are same.

I wrote somewhere else also. I am reproducing it below:

"Degree makes you eligible to apply for the job. It does not even guarantee that your application shall be replied. It also does not give guarantee that you will not be expelled. It makes young people lazy. They tend to look around them who is going to create some economic activity for them to participate. They loose all confidence to create a new economic activity for themselves and for other people. In many big cities, fresh Master degree holders (M.Com, MBA etc.) are given jobs for as low salaries as Rs.7000/- to Rs.8000/-. Especially this commerce and business education is a big fraud with youth. Whole purpose of this education is to ensure regular supply of trained servants for less educated capitalists (Masters). Role of these degree holders is like spare parts of this capital system machine. New spare parts are inducted and then replaced. Good spareparts move to richer parts of this whole machine. This is the all system.

Few days back, I google searched to see exactly why employers demand degree certificates from job applicants. One convincing argument that I found was that presence of degree/certificate gives enough surety that the applicant is determined … he has spent 24/25 years of his life in order to become a good employee. He is submissive and he shall obey the commands of employer (like a donkey). Employers don’t like that employees be able to “plan” the things by themselves. Employers tend to keep planning aspects in their own hands. They prefer and like their own plannings. They don’t really need employees competent enough to plan the things. They only need obedient people who have good track record of completing “assignments” in time.

Education system may be all good in terms of recognition in employment sector. But role of education system is not to spread knowledge. It’s role is to produce obedient people to meet the ongoing demands of employers.

 

[khuramonline]

Task of education system is NOT to spread knowledge or wisdom. Basically it's function is to produce a sort of ranking/ objective eligibility criteria.

We also should understand what "objectivity" or "objective criteria" really mean:

Take the example of a murder case in court. The Judge personally knows that accused is the murderer. But in case there is lack of evidence, the same Judge will have to release that accused person.

Here lack of evidence means lack of objective evidence.

The need of objectivity arises only in group life. Main usage of objectivity is to regulate and harmonize the group life. People settle their disputes while the criteria for decisions are objective. Here objectivity has no direct concern with the reality or truth. Decisions based on objective facts may be misleading. For example if a judge personally knows that the accused is murderer but he has no objective evidence, the judge has to release that person. Here the decision is not based on real situation. Objectivity, for the most part makes our group life more convenient. Just for the sake of this ‘convenience’, the society can prefer objectivity to reality. To base our decisions in a society on reality, which is not supported by objectivity, creates various types of social problems. To worship idols may be objective kind of duty in an idol worshiping country/society but it may not be the real duty for them. If any person in that society denies performing this objective duty and insist on real (which is subjective) duty, that person shall create various types of social problems for himself.

In the same way, this Education System has been designed to regulate group life. It's primary function is only to produce certain eligibility rankings which everyone should easily accept. To acquire your desired ranking, you need NOT to acquire knowledge or wisdom. You only need to show your compliance to rules and regulations of degree awarding authority, which is usually a university. You can show this compliance by rote memorizing certain syllabus books ... you can show this compliance by getting your assignments completed by your more talented friends or even by professionals who offer their "professional" services to students. And you also can show this compliance by giving all the fee/dues/fines/other charges to the educational institution.

To make some objective criteria is not bad in itself. But bad thing in Education System is that it makes this criteria in the name of knowledge and wisdom. Whereas fact is that these universities never recognize knowledge/wisdom of people outside of this system. Universities do not award Masters Urdu degree to a real poet/author. He shall never be eligible to get a teacher job in some university even though he is Mirza Ghalib. Even Micheal Faraday who invented Dynmo Generator ... he will not be eligible to get admission in BSc. class. For the reasons that perhaps he is under matric.

In our present world,,,, if real Aristotle comes,,,, he will not be given job of teacher of Philosophy in any university. Even, he will not be given any PhD degree for the reason he got no masters degree. And he will not be given Masters degree for the reason he possesses no graduate degree.

 

[khuramonline]

Education System itself is fake. It pretends and promises to give knowledge and Wisdom ... but practically it gives only a sort of eligibility ranking.

As Education System is "competent" to draw eligibility rankings ... it gets a sort of athority which it uses/misuses and even manipulates. Universities do blackmale intelligient students just because they lack financial resources to pay their dues. Logon ki majbooriyon ko manipulate ker k bohut se fines/charges collect kiye jate hain. Teachers bhi students ko blackmale kerte hain aur students per apni authority jamate hain. Teachers students ko career destroy kerne tak ki dhamkiyan bhi dete hain.

Education System is conscious of its authority and power. To promote degree culture is in direct interest of this stupid education system.

That's why i really liked CM Balochistan's statement: "Degree Degree Hota hai; asli ho ya naqli...!!!"
Regards!

 

[khuramonline]

And I am happy that CM Balochistan cannot be blamed for fake degree. Degree paper is important for "ranking" minded people. But this "paper" is NOT important for knowledge seeking people.

 

[RescueRanger]

I find it funny how the add the General's name in all of this.:

CDGR asked to scrutinise degrees of 50,000 employees

Monday, July 12, 2010
Rawalpindi

The Punjab government has ordered the City District Government Rawalpindi (CDGR) to scrutinise degrees of around 50,000 employees of education, health, police and agriculture departments, who were appointed during Musharraf’s era from 2000 to 2009.

Reliable sources told this news agency that the Punjab chief secretary has written an official letter to District Coordination Officer (DCO) Imdadullah Bosal directing the heads of all departments to submit details of educational certificates, domiciles, etc of the employees appointed in their respective departments from 2000 to 2009.

It is being feared that the diplomas, domiciles and educational certificates of a large number of employees of various Punjab departments could be bogus. The DCO has been directed to ensure proper scrutiny of educational certificates of employees of various departments.

It is learnt that cases would be registered against the cheats, besides confiscating the remuneration received during their entire service and other fringe benefits. The sources further confided that a large number of technical staff appointed in allied hospitals of Rawalpindi do not possess required diplomas but managed to get employment on political grounds.

CDGR asked to scrutinise degrees of 50,000 employees

 

[sparklingway]

I find it funny how the add the General's name in all of this.:

That was surely unnecessary but there are two generals whose matriculation degrees are fake.