How dispossessed must all the newspaper-reading, not-so-upper class, citizens of Pakistan must feel when they read about the recent allocation of dozens of expensive plots of land to federal secretaries and other bureaucrats? There are families who work tirelessley for years, just to own their own Bhains, their own supari shop, and their own little flat in an inner-city apartment building. And then read how already corrupt bureacrats are are “awarded” plush plots as “bonus” payments.
In a recent news report in The Daily Times, PM Shaukat Aziz has directed that more than 80 plots of land be allocated to high ranking officers in the government.
Establishment Division Secretary Tariq Ali Bukhari confirmed that he had received new orders from the Prime Minister Secretariat to submit the plot allotment summary to the PM for the remaining 36 federal government officers. Earlier, Aziz had issued plot allotment directives for the grade 22 secretaries at the behest of the Secretaries Committee.
The prime minister has ordered that D-12 sector plots be allocated to every federal secretary (grade 22) who has held the position for the last 14 months.
While the role of the PM in this highway robbery of sorts is absolutly despicable, it is even more entertaining, if not outright maddening, that the bureaucrats consider themselves to be so entitled to this allocation that they threatened to disrupt functioning of the government if not given the allottment. According to the news report:
NWFP Chief Secretary Ijaz Qureshi had previously threatened to move a petition before the court against the plan. Later, however, the chief secretaries of Punjab, Balochistan and Sindh as well as the Inspectors General of Police (IGP) for Sindh, NWFP and Punjab also demanded plot allotments. It has also been suggested, sources said, that Islamabad-based bureaucrats who have already been allotted plots under government schemes, could be entitled to additional plot allotments.
I guess one way to silence Ijaz Qureshi was to just award a plot to him as well. Easily done. What is the PM thinking, and how can he be so easily blackmailed? Does he really think any of the people listed below deserve or need a gift?
The final decision on all the plots has not yet been taken, but I note with distress that chances are low for this decision to be reversed. In many ways this government is just following the norms of the bureaucracy as it has evolved in the past few decades. It is not news to anyone that government officers (generally speaking) have become used to rampant corruption and personal gain, inspite of their poor performance at the jobs.
It often feels that if these fringe benefits were not there, we would almost not have anyone to serve in the government. That is a terrible thought, knowing that we have bright young generation looking for career opportunities, if only given a chance. Something needs to be done to stop this rewarding of what has now almost become a mafia, thinly veiled under the guise of public servants. Or else our next generation wil also become roiled up in the same shinanigans as this failed generation of leaders.
I have no hesitation listing below the names of some of the people who expect to receive plots in this current allocation. This is probably not the first such allocation under this govenment, and may not even be the last, but at least this blog will forever document a list of those who received un-necessary bonuses, simply for being in influential positions:
Bureaucrats expected to be awarded plots under the new directives are: seven grade 22 officers of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, including former high commissioner to India, Aziz Khan, current Ambassador to Russia Mustafa Kamal and Special Secretary Ministry of Foreign Affairs Sher Afgan; two officers of Audit and Accounts Group, including Chaudhray Ilyas, Director General Intellectual Property Rights Yasin Tahir; two officers posted to the World Bank, Sabtain Fazal and Sayed Shuja Haider; Water and Power Development Authority (WAPDA) Chairman Tariq Hameed; Federal Public Service Commission (FPSC) member Muhib Ullah; Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) Chairiman Iftikhar Rasheed; National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) Chairman Lt Gen (r) Saeed; two members of the Planning Commission; Trading Corporation of Pakistan Chairman Asif Zaman Ansari; Small and Medium Entrepreneurs Development Authority (SMEDA) Chairman Shahab Anwar Khawaja; Punjab Revenue Board senior member Safdar Javed; Punjab Planning and Development Chairman Salman Ghani; Election Commission of Pakistan Secretary Munawar Muhammad Dilshad; Senate Secretary Raja Muhammad Amin; Chief Secretary Sindh Fazalur Rehman; Chief Secretary Punjab Salman Sadique; Chief Secretary NWFP Ijaz Ahmed Qureshi; Chief Secretary Balochistan KB Rind; IGP Sindh Jehangir Mirza; IGP NWFP Rifat Pasha; and IGP Punjab Major (r) Ziaul Hassan.
Kashif I agree with your post about mulk ka khana but only 50%. They managed to eat half of the country and shikan bhi nahi parnay di mathay pay.
Here is more of the same, according to Daily Times.
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47 secretaries get plots in Sector D-12
ISLAMABAD: Forty-seven federal secretaries, including Grade 22 officials, have been allotted plots in Sector D-12 of the capital. Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz presented the details of these plots in the Senate on Wednesday.
No federal secretary will be allowed to sell these plots, each of which has an area of 600 square yards and is valued at Rs 2.7 million, before the next two years.
Federal Housing and Construction Minister Syed Sufwanullah told the house that the plots had been allotted to former secretary Ijaz Raheem, incumbent Secretary Tariq Mehmood, Syed Jalil Abass, Khalid Saeed, Syed Tariq Bukhari, Naveed Ahsan, Ismail Qureshi, Anwar Mehmood, Abdul Rauf Chaudhry, Shahid Rafi, Kamal Shah, Rasool Buksh Baloch, M Jamil, Ismail Niazi, Aslam Sanjrani, Ahmed Waqar, Wakeel Ahmad Khan, Abdullah Yousaf, Naeem Khan, Sajid Chatha, Saleem Gul Sher, Ishfaq Mehmood, Sajid Hasan, Waqar Masood Khan, Javed Sadiq Malik, Mohsin Hafeez, Syed Mohsin Asad, Humayun Farshori, Tariq Aziz, Jahangir Bashir, Tariq Waseem Ghazi, Tanveer Ali Agha, Riaz Khan, Sher Afgan Khan, Malik Asif Hayat, Justice (r) Mansoor Ahmed, Shahzadul Sheikh, Shakeel Durrani, Syed Masood Alam Rizwi, Sheikh Aleem Mehmood, Sohail Safdar, Syed Bilal Ahmed, Syed Asif Shah, Sharif Ahmed, Farrukh Qayum, Ziaur Rehman and Kamran Rasool. online
As they say: ‘Allah ka diya aur bandoun ka liya bohat kuch hai!’
Apnaa hee maal hai. Looto - jitnaa chahyay!
As my dad says, “Jab allah dey taa hai to chapphar phaar kar deitaa hai.”
Besharmee kee had hoti hai! But I guess our present government has too much else on its mind to worry about this loot khasot. The rich and the powerful become richer, and settle into elite colonies away from others, while the poor struggle to make the ends meet.
By way of update, this news item from The News is of interest… excerpts:
ISLAMABAD - November 20: Islamabad’s master plan being revised to legalise housing colonies developed in green areas in violation of CDA zoning law.�Dawn: http://dawn.com/2006/11/21/SlideShow/NIP14.htm
Did you hear about the young Air Force officer trying to strike up a conversation with an Army General…
Officer: Sir - what do you think of the F-16
General: Pause.. well son if it is corner plot - then take it!
Mr.MQ
I did not mean to say that E12 and D12 are govt housing schemes, what i meant was that govt officers were allowed to buy plots in these sectors.True they may have bought it at one tenth the price it is now….but they also bought it 20 years ago, i think anyone deserves that much appreciation on his/her investment…people have made $300 000 dollars in a couple of years in the recent property ‘hungama’ which im sure you must be aware of.
Thankyou Mr.Khalid and Eidee Man, its comforting to know that there are still people out there who dont indulge in passing generalized statements.