ISLAMABAD: Since its inception a few months ago, the Metropolitan Corporation Islamabad (MCI) has been facing strong direct and indirect resistance from the Capital Development Authority (CDA).

Both the organisations have differences over a number of issues, such as the devolution of the directorate of enforcement, the District Municipal Authority (DMA), the environment department as well as the transfer of employees to the MCI.

Following the devolution of 23 departments, the CDA on June 27 placed around 8,000 employees under the administrative control of the mayor/MCI. However, a majority of the employees refused to join their new assignments and challenged the decision in the Islamabad High Court (IHC).

PTI leader says his party will file petition in IHC in support of Islamabad mayor

On several occasions, Mayor Sheikh Ansar Aziz alleged that the CDA bureaucracy wanted to derail the local government system in the capital city.

Interestingly, the CDA’s resistance has produced an unnatural alliance between the ruling PML-N and its archrival PTI, as the latter has decided to support the mayor in the IHC.

“We are going to file a petition with the IHC for the implementation of the local government act in letter and spirit. [The opposition and the mayor] are on the same page,” said Ali Awan, the PTI opposition leader in the MCI. He said the CDA bureaucracy did not want to see an effective local government in the capital. He said the PTI had hired the services of a renowned lawyer who would file the petition in two days.

“[Bureaucrats] have their vested interests and are creating hurdles for the MCI,” he said.

On the other hand, the enforcement directorate has created a new tug of war between the MCI and the CDA.

A CDA officer, requesting not to be named, said the local government representatives resisted the CDA when it launched an operation against encroachers.

Recently, he added, the enforcement directorate, under the supervision of its director Irshad Taj Warsi, launched the operation but the local representatives pressured him not to go ahead without their consent. He said deputy mayors also took up the matter with CDA Chairman Maroof Afzal.

Sources in the CDA said after coming under pressure Mr Warsi took a month’s leave.

“We are not against any anti-encroachment drive but want the enforcement directorate to conduct the operation by involving the local government representatives,” said deputy mayor Syed Zeeshan Naqvi.

He said local representatives can hold talks with the encroachers, asking them to remove the encroachments on a volunteer basis. “If the talks fail, the enforcement directorate should launch an operation,” he said.

Some officials said the CDA employees, whose services were given under the administrative control of the mayor, were neither following the directions of the CDA nor the mayor office. “They are enjoying the current tug of war between the two organisations,” they added.

The CDA and the MCI also have differences over the management of the Islamabad zoo, and the F-9 and Lakeview parks. Contrary to the local government act, the CDA refused to hand over these facilities to the MCI. However, the mayor brought the matter into the notice of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, who directed for the transfer of the zoo and the parks to the MCI.

When contacted, CDA deputy director Malik Saleem said there were no differences between the MCI and the CDA. “There were some issues, which are now in court and let the court decide the matter,” he said.

Published in Dawn, August 22nd, 2016