Intervention of higher judiciary sought by CBA to keep his votes intact
The rifts between the old and the new guard have surfaced in Islamabad’s top civic agencies. As per the recently issued directions of honourable Islamabad High Court (IHC), no postings or transfers of employees will take place between CDA and Metropolitan Corporation of Islamabad (MCI).
Collective Bargaining Agent (CBA) General Secretary Chaudhry Yasin moved the court to intervene and safeguard service of thousands of employees of CDA.
Islamabad Mayor Sheikh Ansar Aziz is at the receiving end of bureaucracy’s indifference and has been vocal about it for quite some time now. However, it is not the only bureaucracy that is causing a delay in the transfer of powers, but CDA’s Collective Bargaining Agent (CBA) spearheaded by Chaudhry Yasin also demands that the benefits and allowances as diverse as pensions and plots of the employees be ensured and guaranteed before their transfer to MCI.
IHC, in the light of the above circumstances, has ordered that all the parties concerned must hammer out a strategy by mutual consent. At present, the only way out of the crisis is by transferring the CDA’s employees to MCI on deputation till the relevant law is drafted by MCI. The CDA in a cunning manoeuvre has kept the revenue-heavy directorates to itself while 23 directorates pertaining to public dealing, services and maintenance of amenities have been transferred to MCI. Even the mayor admitted that during the division of CDA, the local representatives of people were denied what they rightfully owned.
CBA has filed many writs before IHC, taking a stand that the employees who have been transferred to MCI were denied their rights and have no protection to their service. The high-ups of CDA have started paying heed as on August 4 all further transfers, allocation and appointments from CDA to MCI have been halted until further notice.
“This is the last opportunity to resolve the issues between the once mighty CDA, the influence-wielding CBA and the newly-incorporated MCI. Every party must play its role to sort out the mess capital’s civic agency has become,” said an employee of CDA, who didn’t want to be named.
While power struggle between the institutions and entities is in full swing, the citizens of the capital still struggle for basic amenities like regular water supply and garbage disposal. The road projects have been halted, the street lights have not been repaired in ages, and there is a big list that awaits those indulged in wrangling for petty personal benefits.