IT appears that bureaucratic bungling was behind the delay in opening Karachi's Wazir Mansion, the Quaid's birthplace, to the public on Mr Jinnah's birthday as planned. The grand old mansion has been closed for renovation for over six years now. Due to budgetary constraints restoration work came to a halt in the middle of 2008 and has not been resumed since. It was reported that the delay in the resumption of construction work was because of a shortfall of Rs3m. When the media highlighted the issue in September, the federal government immediately sanctioned the release of funds to the archaeology department, which is responsible for the historical building. But apparently because of procedural constraints the funds have not reached the project officers in Karachi from the federal capital. A “lack of communication, misunderstanding [and] changes in financial rules” are said to be the reasons behind this delay.

It goes without saying that due process must be followed whenever the transfer of large sums of money is involved between government departments to ensure transparency. However, the fact that three months have passed and the funds have still not been transferred is absurd. This is especially true when the significance of the building in question is considered. As we have mentioned before, this is a sad reflection on the importance Pakistani officialdom attaches to the father of the nation. The delay in the transfer of funds is inexcusable, particularly when the issue was raised by the media some time ago and government officials promised to rectify the situation. The closure of Wazir Mansion for over half a decade has deprived citizens of the chance to visit this cultural landmark. Is there anyone in officialdom who has the vision and capacity to change this sorry state of affairs and give this national monument the respect it deserves?