KARACHI: The Frere Hall was illuminated like it has never been before during a ceremony organised by The Guardian Trust and attended by people from all walks of life, including local government representatives, here on Wednesday.

The occasion also commemorated Quaid-i-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah’s 143rd birth anniversary. Shahid Feroz, chairman of The Guardian Trust, said that they were happy to be lighting up the historic building on such a momentous occasion. “The Father of the Nation was born in Karachi, which has been through many difficult times in the recent past. Hopefully, those days are behind us,” he said, adding that the city has seen many good initiatives, including some fine partnerships between civil society and the government, which besides developing the city have also been responsible for spreading awareness among citizens.

German heritage expert brought on board for hall’s restoration project

About the Frere Hall project, he said that it was announced by Mayor of Karachi Wasim Akhtar last year that the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) was going to hand over the management and maintenance of Frere Hall and its gardens to an 18-member guardian board for a five-year period that can also be extended further. This handover then happened on April 12 this year. The guardian board is composed of eminent citizens, including Jamil Yusuf, Amin Hashwani, Durriya Kazi, Ghazi Salahuddin, Kalim Farooqui, Shahid Abdullah, Asif Fancy, Yawar Jilani, Tariq Huda, Saleem Khan, Pervez Said, Arshad Tayebaly and Shahid Feroz.

It has ever since been working hard on the project and has in fact embarked upon an ambitious plan to restore some of the iconic features of the building while adding some more to enhance its cultural value.

“We, the guardians of Frere Hall have done a lot of work, some visible and lots so far invisible yet enormous. We have arranged for international experts. As a matter of fact, one of the three top heritage conservationists of the world who are Unesco-approved has been brought on board for this project. He is Hansen Michael from Aachen University Germany, who also happens to be the custodian of the world’s oldest cathedral and one of the top three Unesco heritage experts, and founder of the Moenjodaro Programme in Pakistan,” he said.

He added that detailed drawings for commencing work are in place though these have not yet been approved by the Government of Sindh’s Heritage Committee and therefore physical activity has not started. “Still, the citizens and corporate community of Karachi have given us overwhelming support and commitment to the funding of the Frere Hall project, which is happening with zero monetary contribution from the government,” he said, adding that until recently they were even without a single drop of water for watering the Frere Hall gardens though they are doing it now with the help of recycled water.

He also thanked Asad Jaffar and his company for their contribution to lighting up Frere Hall. “These lights will be turned on every day now after sunset,” he said.

Finally, he also said that Frere Hall needed some security. “People in this city steal even manhole covers for the sake of retrieving a few iron bars. And here they steal benches, light poles and expensive light fixtures,” he said.

Thanking the Guardian Trust, Mayor Wasim Akhtar said that Frere Hall was first inaugurated in 1865 and the people of this country have brought it to its current state since 1947. “So the KMC decided to join hands with the Guardian Trust to return Karachi this gift,” he said, adding that it is only the first step. “Similarly, we will develop the entire city by joining hands with our business community.”

Published in Dawn, December 26th, 2019