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Friday March 29, 2024

Government employees concerned over demand for more money

By our correspondents
May 28, 2016

Seek SC intervention; Foundation official says applicants ought to pay for development work

Islamabad

Federal government employees, who have deposited billions for different categories of plots in Bhara Kahu under the Federal Government Employees Housing Foundation (FGEHF), have sought the government and the Supreme Court intervention into the fresh demand of money by the Foundation from them.        

In an open letter, a copy of which is available with The News, the concerned employees have pointed out that recently they received a communication from the Foundation, demanding cash from Rs. 250,000 to Rs. 1000,000 for different categories of plots (down payment for cost of land in favour of FGEHF).   

FGEHF was set up in March 1990 by the government to implement self-financing housing schemes on ownership basis for the federal government. 

The Foundation launched membership drive for Phase-I Scheme (Barakahu) in 2009 and started receiving payments upfront against five different categories of plots ranging from Rs5,000 to Rs100,000.

It introduced Phase-II Scheme (Sector F-14 & F-15) membership drive to attract employees demanding payments upfront at the same rate as for Phase-1. This time scheme managed to raise even greater funds than earlier. 

 According to safe estimates over 100,000 applicants have so far applied in the two schemes and thus billions of Rupees have been collected and kept in banks under term deposits”.

“We, being aspirants to own a plot/house of our own to provide to our families a living abode in Islamabad, deposited money separately for Phase-I as well as Phase-II schemes. Applications for Phase-II were called afresh despite the fact that it was clearly written in the advertisement of Phase-I that appeared on 3rd September 2009 that no separate applications would be sought for other schemes of FGEHF and one time application would suffice to be counted for any future scheme. Despite lapse of seven years applicants are yet to receive a provisional allotment letter of plot from FGEHF,” the applicants said.

“We wonder why the policy makers don’t pursue the current practice being followed in uniform services where each and every servant manages to get a plot at the end of his/her service via six monthly nominal and easy installments spread over a period of around 20 years,” they said.

They urged an urgent independent probe while withdrawing instant letter demanding money without allotment and restoration of the old methodology of allotment of plots in main sectors of Islamabad on the sole criterion of seniority /age.

According to the consent letter, signed by assistant director Abdul Basit of FGEHF, sent to the employees, it has been said that they are supposed to pay the amount within 30 days after receiving this letter, sent to them on April 27, 2016. 

The land acquisition collector has issued a notification under section 4 of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 for acquisition of 6,932 kanals of land in Bhara Kahu. Further request for additional land, measuring 14,611 kanals, is also in process. The scheme members have been told that if they fail to deposit the amount, as per the category of plot, they are interested in, within 30 days, it shall be presumed that they are not interested in it and the candidature will be passed on to the next senior most member on the list. 

A senior official of FGEHF, when contacted for his side of the story, told this correspondent that theirs was a non-profit entity, which obtains money from the interested applicants, purchases land and then develops it. “We can’t take loan nor have any source of income. We purely rely on those who get membership of a scheme and then apply,” he noted.

He said developmental work in Phase-I at Bhara Kahu would begin shortly after matters with the developer had been sorted out on the intervention of the National Accountability Bureau. The land was purchased in 2009 and just before allotment/transfer was to start, some applicants moved the Supreme Court, alleging land had been bought on exorbitant price.

Then Chief Justice of the Supreme Court called for entire record of the scheme and no decision could be made till 2014. However, same year, before his retirement, the chief justice gave right of proceeding with the scheme to the Foundation. As many as 35,000 membership applications were received within a year, whereas over 8,500 submitted till 2009.

But developmental work, he noted, could not be started after the developer went to Islamabad High Court, praying how could he carry out the work on same rate, as agreed in 2009, whereas cost of material had doubled. He said an amount of Rs250 million was collected through membership drive. He dispelled the impression that Foundation had deposited billions and was pocketing massive profits because of that. 

Asked why fresh applications were sought despite the fact, through a media ad, it was made clear that after an application filed once, it would be enough for other schemes of the foundation, he said that this was done after the PML-N government decided to revert to the old method, whereby, seniors would be preferred.

The prime minister’s office, he pointed out, approved the summary for F-14, but made it conditional to allotment of plots, keeping in view date of birth, as otherwise, mostly youth would get plots on first come first served basis.

However, the official said that it was purely on the applicants of Phase-I to apply for F-14 and F-15 and hence push for two options in one go. “The success of any of our schemes depends on applicants, their interest and timely payments. Our accounts are open and duly audited every year,” he claimed.  No de-notification had been issued with regards to LAC.