KARACHI, Jan 6: The city government has intensified its efforts for devolution of Karachi Building Control Authority (KBCA) and approached the provincial government again to resolve any dispute on the issue.

City Nazim Naimatullah Khan, constantly moving summaries, has sent another letter to Sindh Additional Chief Secretary (Local Government) to take steps for paving way to devolution of the KBCA to the city government.

In the letter, he expressed deep concern over direct correspondence of DO Buildings (KBCA's chief controller) with the provincial government while bypassing the city government.

"It would be worth mentioning that the KBCA through notification issued by Sindh government has been devolved to the city government and town administrations under SLGO 2001. Thus, the KBCA chief controller has no authority to have direct correspondence with provincial government," he maintained.

According to the Sindh Local Government Ordinance 2001, he stated, all functions regarding land and buildings came within the domain and jurisdiction of local governments. He said that the proposal of KBCA chief controller sent to the provincial government was highly objectionable and against the SLGO 2001, the policy and subsequent notifications of provincial government.

"KBCA chief controller Brig (retd) A.S. Nasir, being an employee of government, instead of complying with the notifications is openly resisting, defying and disobeying the orders of the government issued through notifications," he stated.

He said that the chief controller was posing the KBCA as an independent authority despite clear provisions of the SLGO, which envisaged the KBCA as one of the departments of city government.

"The gravity of the situation could also be understood from the fact that the advocate, who is an employee of the government on behalf of the KBCA has also moved an application for declaring the KBCA as separate entity from the city government," he said.

He recalled that the Sindh government had categorically verified and confirmed the devolution of the KBCA to the city government while answering a question in the provincial assembly.

Mr Naimatullah suggested that the chief controller might be advised to comply with the notifications in words and spirit being an employee of the government. He contradicted the two notifications issued by the provincial government; one in which powers of the KBCA chief executive were delegated to chief controller and second in which Brig (retd) A.S. Nasir had been appointed as the chief controller of KBCA for one year.

"These two notifications are in total contradiction with another notification, whereby the KBCA was devolved to the city government and KBCA chief controller was designated as DO Building Control," he maintained.

He questioned the appointment of KBCA chief controller when the department had been devolved to the city government and the chief controller of buildings has been designated DO (Building Control).

Mr Naimatullah asked for withdrawal of the above mentioned notifications and issuance of a fresh notification giving authority to the city government in this regard. It is learnt that the copies of this letter have also been forwarded to President Musharraf, NRB chairman, Sindh governor and chief secretary. -PPI