New CDA chairman facing challenges to put house in order, control corruption

Islamabad : It will not be an easy going for the new Chairman of the Capital Development Authority (CDA) Captain (r) Muhammad Usman Younas who assumed his office, a little over two weeks back as the federal capital and CDA itself is facing multi-dimensional challenges in different areas.

The challenges the new CDA boss will have to address corruption in directorates of Land, Building Control, Maintenance, Enforcement and other formations of the authority along with timely completion of on-going road development projects and residential sectors.

The federal capital started developing over 60 years back but this unending process of development process is still going on.

Some development activity took place when it comes to construction of new principal roads and expansion and rehabilitation of existing ones but development of new residential sectors remained a dream which is yet to be materialised.

What to talk about development of new residential sectors, the civic body failed in safeguarding investments and rights of small investors and those who wanted to construct their own houses in future as the Land Directorate of CDA refused to issue transfer letters of five marla and seven marla plots in sectors I-12, I-14 and other sectors.

Most of these plots were purchased by small investors from entitled affectees in return for their genuine claims. Most of these plots were purchased by bona fide purchasers, and were transferred by the Land Directorate itself on more than one occasion. But suddenly, the Land Directorate started declaring those plots as bogus leaving small investors with no choice but to wait for the CDA board to take some concrete decision to address their miseries.

The CDA board at its meeting which was held in January, 2021 took a decision to allow transfer of plots which were transferred for at least one time but the decision lacked clarity. Moreover, the CDA officials also lack urge and will to resolve the issue.

The bona fide purchasers feel that they could not be allowed issuance of allotment letters once their transfer cases were accepted by CDA after issuing No Demand Certificate (NDC). The issuance of NDC and acceptance of transfer case means that there is no issue with the plot file and the purchaser can make full payment to the seller while believing verification by the Land Directorate.

They have demanded of the incumbent CDA management that the CDA board should take a concrete and categorical decision so that which were allotted to entitled affectees and transferred from one to four times, could be regularized.

It is interesting to note that the genuine affectees had been compensated but the bona fide purchasers who spent their hard-earned money were suffering for the last two to three years.

Previously, the CDA officials were afraid of taking bold decisions due to the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) but now the NAB could not question decisions taken by Boards of organisations as per the amended Accountability Law (The National Accountability (Second Amendment) Act. 2022. Therefore, there will be no harm in taking a categorical decision by the CDA board to addresses grievances of bona fide purchasers otherwise solution of affectees’ issues will also remain a dream.

The previous management of CDA did work in addressing issue of compensating affectees of sector E-12 but grievances of small investors who are bona fide purchasers of small plots were yet to be addressed.

Meanwhile, the commuters have also demanded of the new CDA chairman to visit under construction IJ Principal, the main highway which is used by commuters to reach their work places in the federal capital and for reaching back to their homes.

This is highly regrettable that the Capital Development Authority (CDA) which should have led by example for other development authorities is itself struggling to save its own which it has been losing over the years.

Neither any action was taken against CDA officers and employees in frauds nor those who authorities who approved transfer of plots were taken to task but small investors who purchased small size plots after verification from the Land Directorate have been suffering for committing no sin.