Govt houses illegally occupied, panel told

Lawmakers allege houses in Islamabad's I-8 sector rented out to private citizens

ISLAMABAD:

A parliamentary panel on Monday called into question the closure of the Pakistan Public Works Department (PWD), alleging illegal occupation of government houses and the failure to provide official accommodation to eligible employees.

The National Assembly's Standing Committee on Housing and Works meeting was held at Parliament House under the chairmanship of Maulana Abdul Ghafoor Haideri.

Committee member Mir Shabbir Ali Bijarani objected to the absence of the minister, secretary and relevant officials, calling for the meeting to be postponed.

The chairman also questioned who would respond to members' queries when neither the minister nor the secretary was present. Officials informed the committee that the newly appointed secretary had not yet assumed charge, while the minister had gone to meet the prime minister.

Expressing displeasure over the absence of the relevant authorities, the committee chairman said no responsible official was present to answer the committee's questions.

During the meeting, committee member Samina Mohiuddin Jamali alleged that private individuals were living in government houses in Islamabad's Sector I-8 and collecting rent from them. She questioned why vacant government houses were not being allotted to deserving government employees.

The ministry's joint secretary confirmed that some of the houses were vacant.

Committee member Malik Abrar Ahmed also said government employees were being denied official accommodation despite making payments, while their complaints were not being addressed effectively.

Protesting against the absence of senior officials, Agha Rafiullah questioned whether such treatment was being meted out to the committee chairman, who belongs to Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F).

He asked what purpose the meeting served when no responsible official was present to provide answers.

The closure of PWD also came under scrutiny, with Hassan Sabir, Syed Sami-ul-Hasan Gillani and Dr Darshan Lal questioning how many investigations, cases and disciplinary actions had been initiated against those responsible if the department had been abolished on account of corruption.

The members pointed out that more than 5,000 employees and their families had been affected by the decision, but there was no clarity about identifying those responsible for corruption or taking action against them.

Haideri said it was unjust to punish an entire department and its employees for the corruption of a few individuals. He questioned why the department had been abolished without completing alternative arrangements, leaving its employees facing difficulties.