Claim: A teacher from an all-girls government school has been fired from her job for suggesting to Chief Minister of Punjab, Maryam Nawaz Sharif that the presence of her team is confusing the students, during the latter’s tour of one of the classrooms.
Fact: Samina Shahid, the woman who can be seen addressing Maryam Nawaz Sharif in a video of her unscheduled visit, is the Principal of Government Pilot Secondary Girls School Wahdat Colony and she has not been fired.
On 10 March 2024, a social media user shared a post on X with a photograph of Maryam Nawaz Sharif in a classroom with the following caption:
“بریکنگ نیوز : مریم میڈم بچیاں کنفیوز ہوجاتی ہیں”کہنے والی ٹیچر کو سرکاری ملازمت سے فارغ کردیا گیا..!!”
[Translation: Breaking News: The teacher who said “Maryam madam, the girls will get confused,” has been terminated from government service..!!]
According to a report published by the PTV on 4 March 2024, the newly appointed Chief Minister of Punjab, Maryam Nawaz Sharif made an unscheduled visit to an all-girls government school called, Government Pilot Secondary Girls School Wahdat Colony. Several video clips of the visit were also shared later on social media.
A woman who seems to be accompanying the Chief Minister during her tour of one of the classrooms, says to her at the 1 minute 40 second marker, “Madam, the girls get confused. These are government school kids and as you know they come from small families, so all of this and these men, when they come in, as I can see the kids’ condition, these kids are getting confused.”
As she goes on to say more, Sharif cuts her off in the middle, asking to continue the conversation outside the classroom. Sharif also reprimands the woman for saying that the students belong to small families.
Fact or Fiction?
To investigate the matter, Soch Fact Check reached out to Ali Raza, who is a researcher for Shehri Pakistan, a sister organisation. When he visited the Government Pilot Secondary Girls School in Wahdat Colony and spoke to a few students, they informed him that the woman who can be seen addressing Maryam Nawaz Sharif in the video is their school principal, Samina Shahid.
When Raza visited the Principal’s office to investigate further, he found that the same woman, Samina Shahid is the principal and is in charge of running the school.
Photographic evidence of our visit to the school is presented below:
1) The first is a photograph of Samina Shahid as seen at her desk during Raza’s visit.
2) The second is a photograph of the note left by Maryam Nawaz Sharif in the visitor’s book, confirming that this is the same school as the one visited by the Chief Minister in the video.
Samina Shahid, Principal of Government Pilot Secondary Girls School Wahdat Colony, sits at her desk. The photograph was taken by Ali Raza on 13 March 2024.
Maryam Nawaz Sharif’s notes in the school’s visitor’s book.
Shahid confirmed to Raza that she was not fired or intimidated, and she has not received any threats to leave her job.
Virality
The post on X was viewed 505,000 times and received more than 20,000 interactions.
On Facebook, we found that the claim was shared here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, and here.
Conclusion: Samina Shahid, Principal of Government Pilot Secondary Girls School Wahdat Colony has not been fired from her job for suggesting to Maryam Nawaz Sharif, during the latter’s unscheduled visit, that the presence of her team is confusing the students.
—
Background image in cover photo: Ali Raza
To appeal against our fact-check, please send an email to appeals@sochfactcheck.com