In Islamabad, over 700 allottees waiting for possession of NAECHS plots

Senate sub-panel directs Parliamentary Affairs Ministry to submit inquiry report in two days

ISLAMABAD: As many as 743 employees of the National Assembly Secretariat are still waiting to receive possession of their plots in the National Assembly Employees Cooperative Housing Society (NAECHS).

This was disclosed as a sub-committee of Senate Functional Committee on Government Assurances on Monday took up the matter of pending allotment of plots in the housing society.

“People responsible for usurping the plots of workers should be handed over to National Accountability Bureau (NAB) or the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA),” said Senator Fida Muhammad, the convenor of the sub-committee.

He further directed the Ministry for Parliamentary Affairs Joint Secretary M Ashfaq Ghumman, who had conducted an inquiry in the matter, to submit his report to the sub-committee, within two days.

According to his inquiry, Ghumman told the sub-committee, that NASECHS has handed over 1,030 kanals of land to the Federation of Employees Cooperative Housing Societies (FECHS) along with Rs433 million as development charges (at a rate of Rs250,000 per plot for 1,730 plots).

Subsequently, the FECHS issued 1,097 allotment letters to NASECHS members. The NASECHS then invited its members to clear dues against their membership worth Rs850,000 per plot.

Members who cleared their dues were issued allotment letters.

However, Ghumman said that since the date of their agreement, the FECHS has provided possession of only 363 plots to NAECHS members, while as many as 743 allottees are still waiting for possession of their plots.

Ghumman expressed the view that the case was extremely convoluted and a complete investigation was required to get to the root of the matter.

A meeting of the sub-committee was scheduled to be held soon after which a decision will be taken whether or not this case is to be handed over to NAB or FIA.

Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Senator Azam Khan Swati, however, reiterated that the forum should issue strong directions to the relevant authorities for facilitating the original allottees of NAECHS.

He further said that primarily, the main concern and focus of the sub-committee should be to ensure that NAECHS comes to fruition.

The meeting also took serious notice of the absence of the Islamabad Deputy Commissioner Hamza Shafqaat, who, despite a notice being sent to the Commissioner Office, failed to show up.

Senator Swati, Senator Abida Muhammad Azeem, senior officers from the Ministry for Parliamentary Affairs, CDA and Islamabad district administration, Cooperative Housing Societies Islamabad Circle Registrar, NAECHS along with all officials concerned attended the meeting.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 11^th, 2020.