ISLAMABAD: Islamabad Mayor Sheikh Anser Aziz came down hard on the Capital Development Authority (CDA) on Wednesday, saying CDA officials and bureaucracy do not want to see the Islamabad Metropolitan Corporation (IMC) function successfully.

Speaking to the press at the Pak-China Friendship Centre after a metropolitan corporation session, the mayor said CDA handed over poorer departments to the corporation while retaining revenue generating departments. “We will make these poor departments good ones,” he added.

Mr Aziz added that the chairmen from urban areas have been asked to set up offices at the metropolitan corporation’s complaint offices, formerly known as the CDA’s inquiry offices set up in all the city’s sectors. The remaining chairmen will be accommodated soon, in rural areas where union council offices have already been set up.

During the session, Mr Aziz said the water crisis is not a new phenomenon, and the CDA is solely responsible for water scarcity in Islamabad. “After destroying the [water directorate] they handed it to us but we will bring improvement to it,” he said. He added that the CDA never paid heed to the water crisis.

He said the corporation is hopeful about receiving Rs10 billion in non-development funds from the federal government, but added, “so far, we have nothing”.

Members of the treasury and opposition benches have also demanded offices for them in union councils. Like the mayor, opposition leader Ali Awan also said elected members find CDA officers to be uncooperative whenever they visit the authority’s offices.

Published in Dawn, July 28th, 2016