CDA’s company for high-rise apartment buildings being revived

ISLAMABAD: The Capital Development Authority (CDA) has sought approval of the federal cabinet to revive a dormant company, established during the tenure of the last Nawaz Sharif government, to launch and develop high-rise apartments for overseas Pakistanis adjacent to the Park Enclave of the federal capital.

Originally, the company had been created to build a business hub and multistorey buildings along the sides of the Islamabad Expressway from Faizabad to Rawat on the pattern of Sheikh Zayed Road — home to most of Dubai's skyscrapers, including the Emirates Towers, that connects other new developments such as the Palm Jumeirah and Dubai Marina. In its meeting on January 30, 2014, the CDA board had decided in principle the transfer by CDA of nearly 560 kanals of land for forming the Margalla Triangle at the confluence of GT Road for the proposed Margalla Avenue for development of a modern commercial hub by and to Pakistan Avenue Development Limited (PADL).

It was stated that the PADL will forward a formal request and proposal to the CDA so that a realistic payment schedule, equivalent to last acquisition, to CDA can be determined as the set out time schedule of three months was found to be insufficient.

The undertaking was akin to 56 companies established in Punjab during the term of Shehbaz Sharif which were strongly criticized by the Supreme Court under Chief Justice Saqib Nisar for their establishment and payment of heavy emoluments to their officers.

The board had approved the appointment of Amer Ali Ahmed as the second CEO of the PADL as well as a member of its board of directors and then-CDA chairman Maroof Afzal as its chief/member.

In the instant case, the interior ministry under which the CDA falls has sponsored a summary, a copy of which was provided to The News, for revival of the PADL and requested that the cabinet clears it through circulation.

It said that the CDA has been tasked by the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) to develop various projects including an exclusive project for overseas Pakistanis for investment in Islamabad. To launch and develop overseas high rise apartments adjacent to Park Enclave and other stand alone development initiatives including Real Estate Investment Trust, it is imperative that the same are executed in the company mode. There is a dormant company duly registered with Security Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) namely PADL under the CDA. The company has remained dormant and non-functional since its incorporation, the summary said.

It said it had been decided vide a PMO letter dated Nov 9, 2021 to revive this dormant company. Since all the previous directors of the board of the company had already resigned from it on their transfer from the CDA or on attaining the age of superannuation, the board is required to be reconstituted.

The board of directors is to consist of the members to be nominated and approved by the federal government under the Public Sector Companies (Corporate Governance) Rules 2013, which prescribed that the board will comprise executive and non-executive directors including independent directors and will have at least one third of its members as independent directors.

The summary noted that the ministry of law has agreed with the proposal after discussion with CDA and found it in order. It annexed with the proposal the views of the finance ministry.

It proposed that top bosses of the CDA, including its chairman Amer Ali Ahmed, its financial adviser/member Rana Shakeel Asghar, its member (administration) Amir Abbas Khan and member (Estate) Naveed Elahi be appointed as executive directors on the PADL board.

The summary also suggested nomination of architect Nayyar Ali Dad and Iftikhar Hussain Arif as independent non-executive directors of the PADL board.

Till such time a full-time chairman and chief executive officer (CEO) as well as other officers are selected by the company, Amer Ali Ahmed may be allowed to officiate as the board chairman, Rana Shakeel Asghar as the CEO and Syed Safdar Ali as the company secretary.

The summary further proposed that the board of directors be allowed to proceed further for change of name of the company of “Islamabad Development Fund Limited” and CDA be permitted to introduce Rs5 billion as seed money/paid up capital of the company. The shared capital will not be traded or sold and will remain a wholly owned company of CDA.