ISLAMABAD: Due to no headway in hundreds of departmental inquiries pending against officials of the Capital Development Authority (CDA), a culture of impunity has taken over the civic agency, with accused officials being “immune to the proceedings” pending against them.
Sources told Dawn over 250 inquiries related to various directorates, including land and estate wings that deal with residential and commercial plots, were pending in the civic agency. In some cases, the CDA officials are facing multiple inquiries. Recently, 14 officials of the land directorate were transferred in light of multiple inquiries against them.
An official said following the transfer of the said officials, a data collection drive was launched by the Human Resource Directorate. The initial report revealed these officials were seemingly “immune to [disciplinary] proceedings”.
The sources said several ongoing proceedings against the said officers had been identified, which indicated a serious flaw in the system. “In many instances, such investigations are protracted, resulting only in minor penalties, even for serious offences,” they added.
Official says more than 250 inquiries pending; several officials facing multiple probes
“If only warning letters are issued and minor penalties are imposed, then corruption will not be controlled,” an official said, calling for harsh measures against the officials.
An official claimed that under the new CDA chief, these inquiries have been expedited and several officials were posted out.
“The incumbent chairman recently posted out a number of officials who were facing inquiries in the land directorate. Similarly, officials enjoying their posting in the estate wing and some other lucrative positions since long have been moved out and transferred to new places,” the official said.
Another official called for “emergency measures” to conclude the pending inquiries so those who are involved in fraud could be held accountable.
“Without strict and timely actions against the guilty officials, the number of corruption cases will not reduce,” he said, adding that the CDA chairman should issue an order for the completion of inquiries within one month.
“The accused officials should either be given harsh punishment or given a clean chit. There should be no ambiguity in the decision of the inquiry officer,” the official said.
A CDA official said the completion of pending probes and award of punishment to accused officials was necessary to restore the public trust in the civic agency. “Through these actions, the organisation can restore confidence in its ability to administer the city effectively and transparently,” the official said.
CDA spokesperson Numan Khalid, who heads the technology wing at the agency, said the current management did not tolerate corruption in the authority.
“In recent months, we have posted out a large number of officials working in the land and estate wings. We are ensuring timely action against the corrupt elements,” he said.
The spokesperson did not know the exact number of inquiries pending in the CDA for years, but said that he would look into the matter. “We have already directed to expedite all inquiries,” he said and added that special focus was being paid to the automation of the CDA affairs to diminish chances of corruption.
“We are installing trackers in vehicles and through this step we will be able to know the exact location of the vehicles as well as their fuel consumption,” he added. The spokesperson said he would get in touch with the Human Resource Directorate to seek the details of pending inquiries.
Published in Dawn, December 26th, 2023
