On September 27, I addressed a letter to Brigadier A. S. Nasir (PA retired), Chief Controller of Buildings, Karachi Building Control Authority (KBCA) and EDO (Building Control Group of Offices), of the City District Government Karachi, who sits at the Civic Centre .

The subject was the NOC issued to the prospective builders of Al-Najeebi Electronics Bazaar (34 and 33/PR-2 Preedy Quarters) which if built will sit side by side with all the other illegally converted and existing electronic markets, and so huge will it be that it will front onto both Abdullah Haroon and Aga Khan III Roads in Saddar, stretching across the block. :

“The permission to construct apparently suffers from an inability to appreciate the environmental degradation that will ensue from the overloading of the totally inadequate utilities and infrastructure that now exists in this highly congested area.

“Many citizens of Karachi (including myself) wish to move the Sindh High Court to salvage the situation. For this purpose would you kindly send to me: 1) Copies of all the Approved Plans, with the relevant covering letter(s); 2) Copy of the Town Planning NOC; 3) Copy of the NOC for Sale.”

Copies were endorsed to Chief Justice of the Sindh High Court Syed Saeed Ashhad and Sindh Ombudsman Yousuf Jamal, seeking their help. Copies were also endorsed to Prime Minister of Pakistan Mr Shaukat Aziz ; Principal Secretary to the Governor of Sindh Brigadier Akhtar Zamin; Nazim of Karachi Mr Niamatullah Khan, and Sindh Chief Secretary Mr Aslam Sanjrani, with a bracketed note for them all which reads: “The officer to whom this letter is addressed is uncooperative. He tends to work against the public interest. He blocks access to information on KBCA affairs which, according to rules and regulations, the public should rightfully be given upon due payment. In order to save time, could any of you four gentlemen kindly order this officer to comply with my request, failing which I would be grateful if you would kindly obtain the necessary documents and forward them to me.”

Now, the Brigadier who has in his charge control over what should and should not be built in the city of Karachi is neither architect, nor engineer, nor urban designer and is thus strictly unqualified to hold the position of chief controller of buildings. His response was as expected. His letter of October 1 2004 addressed to me reads :

“This is in reply to your letter dt 27 Sept 2004 (with arm twisting note for my superiors) demanding : a) copies of all the approved plans with the relevant covering letter(s), b) copy of the Town Planning NOC, c) copy of the NOC for Sale.

“Al Najeebi for your information constitutes first 6 x floors for Car Parking, enabling car parking for over 300 cars — an addition and new dimension in Karachi buildings, which is why the plan was approved.

“The above documents will not be provided to you or to Shehri, as those belong to KBCA clients and being of mutual trust could not be disclosed to anyone on your plea of ‘Access to Information’.

“You may by all means approach SHC as you have done so in pending 25-30 cases before the Honourable Courts. The required documents shall be presented before the court as and when demanded.

“Our clients against whose buildings you have already proceeded have repeatedly protested to KBCA that you and Shehri had been obtaining our client’s confidential building documents, thereafter permitted those to be used against their investments. As such KBCA stands not only committed to honour to protect their respective projects but to accelerate the process on one building or towards Housing Industry as a whole.”

Copies were endorsed to the Chief Secretary, the Advocate General Sindh, the Principal Secretary to the Governor, the Principal Secretary to the CM and the City Nazim CDGK.

Now, in the recorded history of the KBCA the Brigadier may be the first man to have actually told the truth and frankly declared that the KBCA has ‘clients’.

The listed meanings of ‘client’ in the Oxford English Dictionary are five, and three could well apply in the Brigadier’s case. The first one interprets the old antique Roman meaning: ‘A plebeian under the patronage of a patrician, in this relation called a patron, who was bound, in return for certain services, to protect his client’s life and interests.’ Second is the general meaning: ‘One who is under the protection of another, a dependant. Sometimes applied to one who pays constant court to an influential person as patron, a ‘hanger-on’; also, to the vassals or retainers of the middle ages.’ Third, ‘A person who employs the services of a professional or business man or woman in any branch of business, or for whom the latter acts in a professional capacity; a customer.’

The conventional legal meaning does not apply in the Brigadier’s case : ‘One who employs the services of a legal advisor in matters of law; he whose cause an advocate pleads.’

Going by the Brigadier’s reply, it is obvious that he is oblivious of the contents of the Sindh Local Government Ordinance of 2002. Article 137, ‘Transparency’, stipulates that “(1) Every citizen shall have the right to information about any office of the District Government, Taluka Municipal Administration and Union Administration. (2) Every office shall provide requisite information, if not restricted under any law for the time being in force, on the prescribed forms and on payment of such fees as may be prescribed.”

This exchange of letters was shown to Nazim Niamatullah Khan, the city father, who is also not in favour of this particular Brigadier heading the KBCA but is powerless when it comes to removing him. The MQM-dominated Sindh government wishes him to continue on. It has been said that the party is beholden to him for his having physically destroyed the headquarters of the rival Haqiqi.

Yesterday, we read in the Metropolitan section of this newspaper of the ridiculous helplessness of Nazim Niamatullah. He has had to go to court and file a constitutional petition challenging the cancellation of his orders by the Secretary of Local Government.

The developer of Al-Najeebi Electronics Bazaar, Fayyaz Ilyas, came calling last week. He is a developer of Dubai, but the joys of Karachi, his ‘beloved city’, have beckoned him home. He talked of the marvels of Dubai and of the high buildings he can build there. But, I asked him, is there any congestion there? No, of course not, I was told, and there is water, electricity, and drainage enough — more than enough. All are free to see the plans of whatever is being built, which are freely and easily available to the public. I asked him whether he had displayed the plans drawn to scale at the Al-Najeebi site office. No, he had not been asked to so do. Will he provide garage space on the first six floors? No. The basement, ground, first, second and third floors will all be shops. The garage is planned on the sixth floor and as indicated on the model at his sales centre will there be a six-lane ramp? Yes, according to the model. But then Ilyas is unable to make a model to scale. The illustrated brochure which he distributes to entice buyers promises heaven and earth — can he provide both, I asked? No. He was off to Islamabad for the weekend but would bring me the plans on Monday.

The people of Karachi, at least those who feel for this city, who are interested in its future for their sake and the sake of their children, should awake, and rather than passively complaining assert whatever civic rights they have by at least making a noise. This they should do before the monstrosity planned for Saddar becomes reality.