EDITORIAL: Like the sugar barons a common presence in all political parties, inside and outside the government, is that of real estate moguls who use their influence to have their way. A case in point is the hush, hush manner in which the Punjab government has gone about to regularize some 6,000 illegal, irregular and fake housing schemes. According to press reports, taking advantage of the concern raised by Chairman of the Naya Pakistan Housing and Development Authority, Lt-Gen Anwar Ali Hyder (retd), about the irregular housing schemes at a recent meeting, provincial chief secretary prepared a draft together with the Ministry of Law and the Local Government Department, proposing several concessions for builders. As if looking for an opportunity to give them undue concessions, the government did not wait for an assembly session and promulgated an ordinance, regularizing illegal housing societies on payment of a petty two percent fine for each transgression.

Already there are too many scandals involving irregular and/or fake housing schemes. In fact, some prominent PML-N leaders have been facing references filed by the National Accountability Bureau and imprisonment on same charges. Good sense, therefore, suggested that if at all the purpose was to address the grievances of people, as claimed by the government, who had made investments in these fraudulent schemes that should have been done in a transparent fashion, through open debate and discussion. But the issue was not discussed even with relevant ministers in a cabinet meeting. Instead, the draft ordinance was circulated among them merely by way of fulfilling a formality. That was odd enough. More oddity followed. Notably, under the ordinance a commission is to be set up to examine the matters pertaining to private housing projects as well as land sub-divisions that are being developed or have been developed without the approval of the competent authority. Rather than leaving it to the commission to make recommendations in the light of its findings, the government limited its scope of work by announcing various preemptive concessions.

According to the ordinance, in case of land use violation, a fine of two percent of the residential value as per applicable valuation of DC or FBR rate will be imposed. Which means the violators will have to pay a nominal price for far more costly land. More concerning from the standpoint of prospective homeowners is that for the missing parks, open spaces, and graveyards only a fine two times the value of the residential land would be payable. For the real estate developers it is a paltry sum to pay, but non-provision of such basic requirements as parks, open spaces and graveyards, cannot, must not, be allowed. There are several such concessions for construction rules violators at the expense of people who have invested their life savings in the dream of owning a house. The Punjab government’s hurried, inexplicable grant of favours to unscrupulous developers is sure to generate controversy. It’s an invitation to PTI’s detractors to ridicule its self-righteous claims.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2021