RAHIM YAR KHAN: A tense situation has erupted among the district administration and highways and buildings departments after the handover of a government building to the District Health Authority (DHA) chief executive officer.

Rahim Yar Khan Deputy Commissioner Salman Khan Lodhi had on Dec 20 through an order allotted to the health CEO offices of [defunct] EDO (Works & Services) and district officer (roads) situated in Canal Colony to ‘ensure their optimum utilisation.’

These offices were allotted to the CEO because his office was declared as a store for the medicines and equipment of the health authority. The office of the DO (roads) was shifted to the buildings department premises.

On these orders of DC after a meeting of all stakeholders, health CEO Dr Hasan shifted his office to the vacated rooms.

But on the other hand the employees of W&S and roads department set up a protest camp outside the office and chanted slogans against the district administration and DHA. The employees claimed that they had been occupying this building for the last 40 years.

They said they would continue their protest till vacation of the building.

According to some sources in W&S and roads departments, All Pakistan Clerks Association (APCA) district president Boota Abid allegedly instigated the employees for protest due to rivalry with the health CEO.

They said some APCA members in W&S and roads departments occupied some rooms in the [vacated] building for their residential use and they were reluctant to vacate them.

Meanwhile, RYK Chamber of Commerce and Industry president Iqbal Hafeez thanked the district administration for shifting the DHA office from the premises of Sheikh Zayed Medical College Hospital.

Chairman RYKCCI Founders Friends Alliance Haji Ibrahim told Dawn that the DC made a ‘best’ decision as the offices were creating traffic problems at main Sadiq Club Chowk.

DC Salman Khan Lodhi did not reply to the repeated calls made by this correspondent while APCA’s Boota Abid said he had no grudge against the CEO.

Published in Dawn, December 29th, 2022