ISLAMABAD, Jan 9: The Capital Development Authority is planning to set up a "club" at F-9 Park on the pattern of Islamabad Club to provide recreational facilities to citizens.

This was stated by the authority chairman, Kamran Lashari, while talking to Dawn on Friday. He said an open air theatre at Shakarparian would be started by March to provide entertainment and recreational opportunities to the people of Islamabad.

The theatre, he said, would be opened for live shows and dramas in a big ceremony. "I want to make Islamabad a lively city, but it required initiatives and political will," he added.

"I want to develop more attractive things in the park, but the ban imposed by the All Pakistan Newspapers Society on CDA's advertisement in the national dailies for not paying dues to an advertisement agency was the main hurdle in the way of such plans," Mr Lashari said.

"Owing to the ban, we could not float our advertisement to invite local and foreign firms for the projects," he added. The CDA chief said it had been decided that the authority would pay 50 per cent of the amount claimed by the advertising agency.

He said he would shortly start holding open hearings in the CDA headquarters on weekly basis to receive people's complaints and issue directives for their redressal.

He said there was a mess in various directorates of the authority, especially land directorate, estate management directorates and building control section. "I have given one- month deadline to the officials of these directorates to dispose of pending complaints and streamline their working, failing which they would be taken to task."