Leadership changes in HDA, WASA amid on-going trials

SHC had given Sindh govt two days to appoint a permanent director general for HDA

HYDERABAD: A mug's game is apparently underway in the Hyderabad Development Authority (HDA) and its subsidiary, the Water and Sanitation Agency (WASA), whose bosses are being subjected to frequent reshuffling amid an on-going petition against the two organisations in the Sindh High Court (SHC). On Friday, the Sindh government removed Muhammad Nawaz Soho from the post of HDA director-general, 22 days after appointing him on the post.

He was replaced by Ghulam Muhammad Qaimkhani, whom Soho had replaced earlier this month, as the acting DG. SHC had given two days to the provincial government on August 1 for appointing a permanent DG but the government took over a month as Soho was appointed on September 5.

Advocate Sajjad Ahmed Chandio, who has been fighting a case for the supply of clean drinking water to the citizens of Hyderabad, said he will challenge the notification in SHC. "The court, after asking time and again about the appointment of a permanent DG, finally gave two days to the provincial government on August 1 for complying with the order."

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He said the provincial government cannot fob off the court by appointing a full-time DG for around three weeks and then again replacing him with the official who has served many stints as the acting HAD DG.

WASA Managing Director Saleemuddin Arain, who continued as the acting MD until he was made the permanent MD on SHC's order for appointing a permanent head of the agency two months ago, has also been removed. He has been substituted by Muzaffar Memon as the MD, according to a separate notification issued by chief secretary Sindh Mumtaz Ali Shah.

The recurrent reshuffle has been happening amid water supply and drainage woes pertaining to WASA in the city. The HDA has also failed in completing the mega housing scheme, Gulistan-e-Sarmast in Kohsar, against which the authority has reportedly collected over Rs6 billion from the allottees.

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An official of HDA, who requested anonymity, claimed that Soho was dismayed that he was not allowed to implement the decisions for the recovery of the water bills to help restore the financial health of the ailing WASA. “He had formed teams to recover the dues from the domestic and the commercial consumers and had announced a one-window operation for obtaining new water connections within three days of submitting an application,” the official said.

SHC, in its multiple orders, has directed HDA and WASA to replace the damaged water supply and drainage pipelines, streamline commercial billing, install water meters on commercial consumers specially car services stations and to establish a centralised complaint centre.

However, most of the orders have not been complied with so far.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 29^th, 2019.