JEDDAH — Politics is taking its toll on the students of Pakistan International School Jeddah-English Section (PISJ-ES). The school administration first sent out a message at around 11 a.m. Wednesday saying: “The school has been closed till further notification.” Within two hours, the administration sent another message saying: “The school will remain open tomorrow, Thursday 21, 2013.” Pakistan Ambassador Muhammad Naeem Khan terminated the services of the school's principal, Sehar Kamran, Tuesday and appointed Imran Raza Khan, director of administration, as acting principal. School Link Officer Sohail Ali Khan eventually took Imran, the acting principal, to the school personally Wednesday afternoon. He calmed infuriated parents and assured them that the school will remain open. He said the consulate and the embassy in Riyadh are in consultation with Saudi authorities at all levels. “The notice was served to the principal with the knowledge of the Saudi Ministry of Education,” he said. Sohail said it is a Pakistan government order and anyone's likes and dislikes do not come into play. Speaking to Saudi Gazette, Sohail Khan said: “Ms Sehar Kamran, according to the order, is a former principal. It is a pity she has made it a personal issue. We are following legal course. We are willing to speak to her, but she wants to make a scene out of it.” Kamran was very much in the school Wednesday afternoon and also spoke to the parents who had come to pick their children when the school was closed ahead of time. “The consulate is playing dirty politics. They have no right to speak in the school's affairs,” she told concerned parents. To say the embassy has no role in the school affairs is interesting since Kamran was herself appointed as principal by the then ambassador in November 2009. Pushed by parents to settle the dispute behind closed doors, Kamran said: “Teachers are not willing to continue under the new administration. I am holding them back.” When contacted, Khalid Al-Harthy, director general of schools at the Saudi Ministry of Education, refused to speak on the issue, saying only the ministry's public relations department can speak on the record about it. When Saudi Gazette contacted a few teachers, they said, on condition of anonymity, most of them would not care who is at the top. Kamran had spoken to the teachers Tuesday and asked them to stay united. The parents attending the school remain in a fix. “I am not sure whether to send my kids to school Thursday. I may not be able to pick them if I receive an SMS saying the school is closing early. I will wait and see,” a disgruntled parent told Saudi Gazette.
