Mian Iftikhar urges govt to implement

APC decisions on CPEC route

PESHAWAR: Awami National Party (ANP) Secretary General of Mian Iftikhar Hussain has said that the eradication of poverty and terrorism in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan is linked to the success of China-Pakistan-Economic-Corridor (CPEC).

Talking to The News after his address to the inauguration ceremony of the Western route of the economic corridor in Zhob, the ANP leader urged the government to implement the unanimous decisions of the All Parties Conference about the project in letter and spirit.

He said the areas which have been neglected in the past and have suffered due to terrorism for the last many years should be provided the opportunity to take more benefits from the corridor. The ANP leader said that the government should fully implements the promises it had made with the people and the assurances given to ANP chief Asfandyar Wali Khan by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif during a meeting.

He said that the Western route of the economic corridor would help develop the areas and ignoring this route would be tantamount to the economic murder of the Pakhtuns. Mian Iftikhar said the government should focus its attention on eradication of poverty and backwardness in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan so terrorism could be eliminated and the affected areas brought on a par with the developed ones.

The ANP leader was of the opinion that the people of Balochistan had the right to Gawadar Port and their right should be accepted.He said that the region was facing the worst dangers of terrorism. The recent suicide bombing in Mardan was a proof of the fact that the terrorists have not been eradicated and they are busy in reorganising their ranks. “Therefore, the National Action Plan should be fully implemented to ensure complete eradication of the terrorists.”

Mian Iftikhar also stressed the need for better ties with Afghanistan and India. He said that the recent visit of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Afghanistan and Pakistan carried immense importance which would have positive impacts n the region.