Additional suites at Parliament Lodges: slow pace of construction irks NA body

The National Assembly Standing Committee on House and Library expressed displeasure over the delay in construction of additional suites and servant quarters in the Parliament Lodges Islamabad and directed the Capital Development Authority (CDA) to resolve the matter immediately. The committee headed by Deputy Speaker National Assembly Murtaza Javed Abbasi on Wednesday discussed matters pertaining to possession of plots to members of National Assembly Employees Cooperative Housing Society (NAECHS), budget and maintenance of Parliament House and up-gradation of National Assembly Library in addition to construction of suits for MPs.
The deputy speaker flayed the delay in construction of family suites at Parliament Lodges, saying the project which started in May 2011 and was to be completed in November 2013, but due to negligence of CDA and construction firm the work on the said project could not be completed till date. He maintained that despite several commitments before the committee the construction firm did not make sincere efforts to complete the project. He said that due to the lethargic attitude towards the contractor obligation and completion of the project within the stipulated time and extended time frame the project could not be completed till date.
He said that due to non-completion of this project the parliamentarians who have not been provided residential accommodations are suffering for the last four years. He said that the contractor, in an attempt to put his incapability under the carpet and linger on the matter, has taken the matter the arbitrator but the CDA is not seemed to be actively pursuing the case to dispose it off timely. The committee directed the chairman CDA to take personal interest in resolving the matter immediately and seek other possible legal solutions.
The members of the committee also expressed their grave concerns and expressed that not only the contractor failed to complete the project but also demolished the servant quarters and garages adjacent to lodges resulting in severe difficulties for the residents. The committee also discussed the status of possession of plots to the Employees of the National Assembly Employees Cooperative Housing Society. The committee expressed its displeasure over delaying tactics in handing over the possession of plots to the National Assembly Secretariat employees by the Federal Employees Cooperative Housing Society (FECHS).
The committee also expressed its displeasure for not implementing Joint Venture Agreement between NAECHS and Federal Employees Cooperative Housing Society for provision of plots to the employees of National Assembly and Senate. The deputy speaker held that according to the Joint venture, FECHS was bound to give possession of plots to 1096 members of Parliament but only 413 were awarded the possession. In addition to this negligence, the FECHS has been giving the possessions of expensive NAECHS land to irrelevant people instead of members of NAECHS.
The deputy speaker said that the FECHS former management did not implement the joint venture and is responsible for criminal negligence. He held that the former president of FECHS be held ineligible to take part in the FECHS elections and instructed the registrar Cooperative House Societies, Islamabad to take action against him. He demanded to postpone the FECHS elections till an action is taken against the former president and FECHS's current administrator be authorized to give allotment of plots. The committee suggested initiating FIA investigations against the former President.
The committee expressed its displeasure over poor cleanliness situation in the Parliament Lodges and directed the CDA to improve its maintenance department in this regard. The committee was attended by MNAs Malik Ibrar Ahmed, Mian Muhammad Rasheed, Dr Ibadullah, Aqib Ullah Khan, Dr Mahreen Razaque Bhutto and Shahida Rehmani.