May 22, 2008	Thursday	Jamadi-ul-Awwal 16, 1429

ISLAMABAD, May 21: Federal Minister for Housing and Works Rehmatullah Kakar informed a Senate committee on Wednesday that the issuing of eligibility certificates to the occupants of government flats in Karachi by a former housing minister did not entitle them to sell the property.

The minister, however, assured that nobody would be evicted from the houses because all occupants had been paying rents regularly.

Mr Kakar was responding to questions at a meeting of the Senate Standing Committee on Housing and Works on Wednesday. Senator Mohammad Ali Brohi presided over the meeting.

Estate officer Sher Afzal told the meeting that more than 800 people had been illegally living in government houses in sector G-6 alone. These people, he said, had retired long ago – some 10 to 12 years back – but they still occupied the government accommodation.

Senator Maulana Rahat Hussain told the committee that a number of police personnel including some senior officers had illegally occupied government houses, quarters and flats.

The estate officer said the police personnel could not be evicted because they had the backing of their superiors. Whenever the estate office tried to dislodge a police official from a government quarter, he brought his fellow policemen and threatened the operation squad with dire consequences.

The committee decided to convene a high-level meeting and ask the secretary interior and Islamabad police inspector-general to resolve the issue. Some senators suggested that Rangers and Frontier Constabulary should be used to reclaim the houses.

Directives were issued to the estate office to take action against all illegal occupants of government-owned accommodation in the capital and solve the problem of federal employees.

The estate officer complained of being victimised. “Every point on the agenda starts and ends with a complaint against me. What should I do?

“None of the employees is ready to voluntarily vacate official residence after retirement. Should I sit silent or perform my duties and dislodge these illegal occupants,” he wondered.

The minister informed the committee about steps being taken to improve the working of the ministry and make the allotment process transparent.

Other senators who attended the meeting are: Shuja-ul-Mulk, Dr Abdul Khalid Pirzada, Mir Mohabat Khan Marri and Mohammad Saleh Shah.