RAWALPINDI: The Rawalpindi Municipal Corporation (RMC) is renting out its old building on Liaquat Bagh for Rs1.5 million per month without the approval of elected members.

Under its rules, the RMC must make financial decisions after approval from elected members. Union council chairmen have demanded an RMC session immediately to discuss the matter.

The RMC had formed a committee to rent its building, and the auction was held at the RMC offices and participated in by two parties.

One of the parties was selected and given two floors of the building and the basement. Jinnah Hall on the third floor has not been rented out as it is used for RMC meetings.

The building has been rented in order to generate revenue to pay back a Rs300m loan to the Punjab Local Government Department.

Under the rules, the corporation must make financial decisions after approval from the elected members

The civic body borrowed Rs75m in 1992 to construct the building and has failed to return it, during which time interest has accumulated.

Last year, the RMC had asked the provincial government to waive the loan but did not receive a response.

It then tried to rent the aforementioned building three times, but was unsuccessful.

A senior official told Dawn that the RMC administration needed the approval of the elected house before renting the building and elected members should have been included in the auction committee.

He added that the auction committee consisted of senior RMC officials and only two parties participated. He said an auction has to be cancelled if it has fewer than three participants.

The official said the successful party has plans to set up an educational institute in the building, which could lead to traffic congestion as the building stands in front of the Government Gordon College for Boys and the National College of Arts is nearby.

When contacted, Municipal Officer Finance Shahzad Gondal confirmed that the building had been leased, and said this matter would be presented before the elected house at the next session.

He said the successful party would get possession after approval from the house.

Mr Gondal explained that the building was rented because it had been vacant for three years, in order to generate funds.

He said the civic body had wanted to rent it to multinational companies but received little interest.

He added that goods confiscated in anti-encroachment drives are kept in the basement of the building, which will be transferred to the basement of the current RMC offices.

Published in Dawn, March 24th, 2019