Kayani suspends construction of new GHQ in Islamabad

[Naveed Yaseen]

Shakil Shaikh

ISLAMABAD: In its spirit of sacrifice for economic stability, Chief of Army Staff General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani on Tuesday suspended the construction of one billion dollar General Headquarters (GHQ) in the federal capital. The decision was taken in view of the lingering financial crunch.

Many describe the declaration by COAS that “the Army shares the nation’s quest for economic stability through a spirit of sacrifice” as historic. The suspension of the construction work for the GHQ reflects the will of the Army to help save a huge amount at this critical juncture of financial crunch and vulnerable economic situation.

The announcement of the Army chief would help save around Rs 60-70 billion. The financial crunch may lead to abandoning several other mega projects. Initially, a huge chunk of land was located in Islamabad for housing what is known as “Defence Complex” and it took many years to acquire the required land.

The construction of this project started in 2007 and about 10 per cent work has already been completed. The project was approved in 1973 by the government of late Zulfikar Ali Bhutto. It was to be completed in three phases. In Phase 1 and 2, Naval and Air Force Complexes have been completed and the headquarters of these two services shifted to E-8 and E-9 Sectors.

In the last phase, the Defence Ministry, the Joint Staff Headquarters and the General Headquarters were to be shifted to the Defence Complex, the work on which now stands suspended.

In a related development, President Asif Ali Zardari has already announced that Pakistan’s defence budget will not be reduced on anybody else’s demands, an oblique reference to fears that the IMF might demand a drastic cut in defence spending as a condition for economic assistance.

http://www.thenews.com.pk/top_story_detail.asp?Id=18058