Dilapidated roads: CDA’s ‘indifference’ draws parliamentarians’ ire

Ask CDA chairperson to appear before the house.

ISLAMABAD:

Parliamentarians came hard on the Capital Development Authority’s (CDA) chairperson on Thursday for failing to inform them about the state of damaged roads across the city.

The parliamentary panel had asked Engineer Farkhand Iqbal last month to comment on some pressing public issues, mostly dominated by dilapidated roads in sectors G-6, G-7, G-8, G-9, G-10, G-11, I-9,1-10, H-8 and H-9.

Minister for Religious Affairs Khursheed Shah informed the panel that Iqbal did not respond due to “some unknown reasons” and stressed that he be asked to appear before the house.

A disgruntled PML-N MNA Haneef Abbasi said, “The civil bureaucracy should be taught how to obey the parliament’s instructions.” He said it is the prime responsibility of the CDA to facilitate the public by providing decent transport and by establishing new sectors, something it has been ignoring.

National Assembly Deputy Speaker Fasial Karim Kundi directed Shah to inquire into these issues and resolve them immediately.

Islamabad Citizen Forum President Raja Mushtaq Ahmed said the civic agency discriminates in the upkeep of the city as it focuses more on the development of posh sectors. He said that numerous complaints have been sent to the CDA for the repair of roads in the said sectors but to no avail. He added that there are many uncovered manholes in different areas of the city.

Despite repeated attempts, the CDA chairperson could not be contacted for comments.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 16^th, 2012.