2 CDA officials suspended: Opposition leader office's issue
By Syed Irfan Raza
ISLAMABAD, March 12: The Capital Development Authority (CDA) on Friday suspended its two senior officials for allowing the opposition leaders to sit in the chambers of 'leader of the Opposition'
and 'deputy leader of the Opposition' in the Parliament House without competent authority's orders, a source told Dawn.
According to the source, those who have been suspended are the Parliament House director, Maqsood Ahmed, and his deputy, Mirza Nafees. Both the officials have received verbal orders of suspension, as the written orders would be served on Saturday.
"We thought that the matter has been resolved and no action will be taken against the responsible employees of the CDA deployed in the Parliament House. But, today we heard that action has been taken against us," a suspended official told this reporter.
The maintenance of the Parliament House building is the responsibility of the CDA, therefore, a complete directorate has been established there.
The suspended officials said the CDA guard, who had unlocked the doors of the chambers of 'leader of the Oposition' and 'deputy leader of the Oposition' had not been suspended while those who were not present there had been taken to task.
The National Assembly secretariat staff on Friday, however, again locked the two chambers after getting these vacated from the MNAs of the People's Party Parliamentarians (PPP) and the Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal (MMA).
Meanwhile, one of the suspended officials said the PPP and ARD MNAs occupied the chambers on Thursday, when the speaker had adjourned the session for Zohr prayers.
Soon after occupying the Opposition leader's chamber, the PPP MNAs hanged on its walls the portraits of party chairperson Benazir Bhutto. Raja Pervez Ashraf, while speaking at a press conference, claimed that the chamber belonged to the ARD chairman, Makhdoom Amin Fahim, who, he added, enjoyed the support of 80 MNAs.
The PPP MNAs offered the deputy Opposition leader's chamber to the MMA secretary-general, Maulana Fazlur Rahman, who was also there with his MNAs and supporters.
It may be mentioned that both Makhdoom Amin Fahim and Maulana Fazlur Rehman are the candidates for the leader of the Opposition.
Later, a press release, issued by the National Assembly secretariat on Friday evening, alleged that the Opposition members had "forcibly" occupied the chambers when the CDA staff was busy in routine cleaning of offices in the Parliament House.
As soon as the Opposition members left the chambers in the evening, the NA staff again got possession of it and locked the doors.
