Dispute over 'ruins' of Keamari: special assistant to chief minister facing 'bhatta' allegations

A special assistant to Chief Minister Sindh Syed Qaim Ali Shah is, allegedly, demanding Rs 2.5 million "Bhatta" from one of the city's administrators. "Mr Akhtar Jadoon, the special assistant to the Worthy Chief Minister Sindh, called... at my cell... (and) demanded Bhatta of an amount of Rupees 2.5 million," reads a letter written by Sajjad Ahmad Memon, administrator District Municipal Corporation West, to secretary local government on Friday last.
Akhtar Hussain Jadoon, a PPP stalwart from an impoverished Keamari Town, is a former provincial transport minister who in April 213 had protested at Bilawal House against the party leadership which had prioritised Syed Dilawar Shah over him in giving party ticket for contesting from PS-89 in May 2013 election. However, Jadoon later mended fences with party leadership, which resulted into the visit of PPP Co-Chairman Asif Zardari to his "Dera" at Masan Road. Now the former two-time member of Sindh Assembly is working as a special assistant to Sindh Chief Minister on local government affairs, a post traditionally considered equivalent to a minister's portfolio.
Memon, who is believed to be a close relative of Local Government Minister Sharjeel Memon who presently is on Exit Control List (ECL) under corruption charges, claimed that Jadoon telephoned him at 9pm on November 11, demanded the Rs 2.5 million extortion money and threatened to kidnap him when the self-proclaimed "dutiful" administrator refused to accept his "illegal" demands.
"Mr Jadoon got infuriated... and used filthy and abusive language against the undersigned and extended deadly and serious life threats," reads the letter, a copy of which is available with Business Recorder. The chief minster's special assistant also, allegedly, warned Memon of "dire consequences in case the undersigned did not vacate the government office".
"Mr Akhtar Jadoon during his conversation restrained and deterred me from performing lawful duties as administrator... (and) threatened to kidnap me," claimed the KMC official, who at the month's start had visited the "ruins" of Keamari, Jadoon ruled for almost a decade. Interestingly, the telephonic threats, as Memon claimed, were also heard by Municipal Commissioner DMC West Ashfaque Mallah, ex-minister and PPP's Karachi Division general secretary Nadeem Bhutto, PPP's General Secretary District West Siddiq-e-Akber, Majid Hussain and Ali Raza Shah.
Requesting the secretary local government for him and his family, the administrator sought "strict action" against the chief minister's aide. "This is a disgusting dilemma but correct," the administrator confirmed to Business Recorder that he had sent his letter to secretary local government, as well as Secretary to the chief minister, private secretary to minister local government, Director General Rangers, home secretary, IG Sindh, Commissioner Karachi, Administrator KMC, deputy commissioner district west, SSP district west and wing commander of Pakistan Rangers district west.
"He (Jadoon) asked me for money. What else you call it if not extortion," Memon contended adding the PPP leader's threats came despite his all-out cooperation to the former in the area's development. As most of Keamariites believe, Memon, however, said no development work had been carried out in the port vicinity. "Keamari presents the picture of ruins," he said.
Though rejecting his charges as baseless allegations, Jadoon also seconded Memon's view that Keamari, a traditional PPP stronghold now won by PML-N's Humayun Muhammad Khan. "You visit Keamari which is sinking (in filthy sewage water)," the chief minister's aide conceded. Memon, he claimed, was himself a "thief" having never co-operated with him on undertaking developed works in the city's most-neglected locality. Skipping a question whether he had made a telephone call for "Bhatta", Jadoon said he was a public figure and had, therefore, been making several calls to Memon "in public interest".
"I would now drag him to the accountability court," the former minister said. "They have been awarding contracts of Rs 5-8 million to contractors from some fake companies," he alleged. Asked what prevented him so far to act against a "corrupt" administrator, Jadoon replied: "I so far have been accommodative to his wrongdoings because of his father".
While the two government officials appear to have long been accommodating each other for different vested interests, the people of Keamari mince no words in criticising their elected representatives. "All he (Jadoon) did in his two tenures was to buy a lush bungalow in Defence and shift thereto," claimed Wasim Jadoon, a relative of the PPP leader. "Look at Keamari. No roads, no water, no sanitation, nothing is here," the youth said. The PPP-led Sindh government had long been under fire for distributing development funds on political basis in the province, especially in Karachi.