Father appeals for help with daughters’ school fees

Dubai: A father said his three daughters’ schooling hangs in the balance while he battles a Dubai court case.

Pakistani expat Syed Haider, a former senior credit control manager at a UAE bank, said he is unable to pay Dh12,950 for their school fees by September 15.

He fears they will be pulled out if he fails to pay by the deadline.

The 43-year-old said that he is embroiled in a loan fraud case brought by his bank and cannot find employment. His wife has also lost her job as a bank call centre employee.

“I’m innocent. I’ve lodged an appeal and am waiting for a hearing date. I don’t want my daughters to suffer. They must have their education,” Haider said.

His youngest daughter, aged seven, is in grade three, while his nine-year-old is in grade four and his eldest daughter, aged 14, is in grade nine. The younger daughters study in a Pakistani school in Sharjah while the elder one studies in a British curriculum school in Dubai.

Haider added that the Ajman-based family also needs Dh8,500 before September 23 to back a post-dated rent cheque for the amount.

“I want to clear my name and start work again so I can fully support my family again. If I was a fraudster, I could have vanished with the money.”

Haider said he was accused of involvement in a multimillion dirham loan fraud. He had vetted personal loan applications of seven Arab women. The debtors stopped paying their instalments after seven months and vanished, Haider said. A loan recovery company hired by the bank could not locate the women, he added.

Haider said he was wrongly suspected of involvement as he never benefited from the money and “stood my ground to fight the case”.

“Why would I put myself and my family though all this? God willing, my appeal case will absolve me,” he added.

Haider said he has not been able to secure enough assistance from charity organisations to ensure his daughters can stay in school. “I have no valid visa now; my passport is with the court. I would never have asked anyone’s help had it not been for my daughters’ future.”

He added that there had been “some financial help” in 2013 when his case was covered by XPRESS, a sister newspaper of Gulf News, but the family now faces a fresh crisis in settling school fees and rent this month.