Parliament Lodges' residents: most lawmakers reluctant to provide data

Most parliamentarians have not filed a prescribed form circulated by the Capital Development Authority (CDA) a month ago aimed at collecting information about everyone, including staff, residing in the Parliament Lodges. The initiative was taken to eject anyone who was occupying Parliament Lodges illegally and guest rooms notably friends, servants and staff members of parliamentarians.
"In the wake of increasing security threats, the CDA has circulated a pro forma among all parliamentarians residing in the Parliament Lodges to provide details of all residing in the lodges to issue security passes that would authorise their entry into the lodges. The directorate concerned of the CDA has so far received only 50 duly filled forms filed by parliamentarians," an official source said.
He stated that parliamentarians' acquaintances and people from their constituencies stay in side rooms of the lodges which "is a permanent security threat" in addition to proving a privacy nuisance for families living in the building. "Illegal residents may have been responsible for thefts in the lodges of MNA Kashmala Tariq and Senator Surraya Ameeruddin," he said.
The official said that the building had seven blocks each with five lobbies and each lobby consisting of several visiting rooms. When the building was built in 1996-97, these visiting rooms were used by the guests of parliamentarians but with the passage of time, they were occupied by relatives, friends, servants and security guards of MNAs and senators.
He said that the CDA on July 14 conducted an operation and vacated 15 lobbies at Parliament Lodges that were illegally occupied by some federal ministers and parliamentarians. Five senators, three ministers and seven MNAs illegally occupied lobbies and even built illegal rooms in front of their flats in the lodges, he said. The CDA conducted a similar operation in 2010 and evicted more than 250 illegal persons from 25 lobbies.
The official said that 10 servant quarters of 121 had been locked by 'friends' of various parliamentarians. It is not known what is stored in these quarters.