FIA Islamabad Zone working from ‘dilapidated, unauthorised’ building

Author: By Muhammad Asad Chaudhry

ISLAMABAD: The zonal office of country’s premier investigation agency, Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), in Islamabad is not only working from an unauthorized and dilapidated building but mismanagement inside the premises also speaks for itself.

The Islamabad zone of the FIA is comprised of six circles: Anti-Corruption Circle Islamabad, Anti-Corruption Circle Gilgit, Cyber Crime Circle Islamabad, Commercial Banking Circle Islamabad, Anti-Human Trafficking Circle Islamabad and Anti Human Trafficking Circle Rawalpindi.

According to details issued in March 2017, a total of 689 inquires, 223 cases and 1,326 court cases were pending in Islamabad Zone while the bureau had recovered 2536.8 million rupees from offenders in first three months of this year.

In spite of aforementioned excessive workload and recovery of millions of rupees, the situation of the building in which the offices of six circles is housed remains unchanged. The building is situated in an area where the construction is prohibited by the Capital Development Authority (CDA) and sources inside the civic body confirmed to Daily Times that the building of FIA was unauthorised.

The building is badly exposed both from the security perspective as well as to any natural calamity. There is no proper fire and safety system installed at the building, with a slum area on its rear side. There is no proper reception at the entrance of the office to guide the visitors and staff deputed at the main gate often treats the common citizens rudely.

As far as inside view of the building is concerned, there is no proper arrangement of cleaning; extra rooms are being created by bifurcations with the help of wooden sheets; the basement of the building is being used as prison while officers are forced to sit in narrow cabins.

Last but not the least, the agency has erected barricades on road in front of its building, restricting the movement of citizens. The barricades are also causing difficulties for the commuters who are forced to cover a long distance to get to the other side of the office through alternate routes. The building is not being used by the FIA free of cost and the monthly rent for it is Rs 421,225. This scribe tried to contact Director FIA Islamabad Zone Shakeel Ahmed Durrani but he did not respond to specific quires about poor state of affairs.

Published in Daily Times, December 22^nd2017.