NA-31 Peshawar: Disgruntled PTI leader joins PPP, awarded ticket

PESHAWAR: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI)’s regional senior vice-president Akhundzada Irfanullah Shah on Saturday announced joining the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) along with his supporters after being denied ticket by the party.

He made the announcement at a press conference here.

Former PPP provincial President Syed Zahir Ali Shah, former MPA Ziaullah Afridi, PPP district Peshawar resident Zulfiqar Afghani, and others were present at the press conference when Irfanullah Shah made the announcement. Soon afterwards he was given the PPP ticket to contest election for NA-31 Peshawar.

Irfanullah Shah said the previous PTI-led provincial government deceived the people of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa as it couldn’t honour its promises made with the people.

He said the PTI had claimed to bring about a change, but it failed to do so during its five years term in office.

He observed that instead of nominating ideological workers, the PTI leadership gave tickets to those who were expelled from other parties.

Announcing his decision to quit the PTI, he said the PPP was the name of an ideology and it alone was capable of pulling the country out of the prevailing crises.

Welcoming Irfanullah Shah in PPP, Syed Zahir Ali Shah said Peshawar was their city but the outsiders had made it hostage. “Now Peshawar residents had awakened and would vote for their own candidates,” he argued.

He said instead of voting for cheaters, the people would defeat them in the general election. He said the PTI government couldn’t complete a single development project during its five years rule. “Rather it ruined Peshawar through the much-trumpeted Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) project,” he maintained.

Zahir Ali Shah said the people didn’t want new but their old traditional Peshawar. He said the rulers had broken all record of corruption in BRT, adding the National Accountability Bureau would launch corruption cases against the PTI rulers. He said it was astonishing that PTI allotted tickets to those who had been declared “thieves” by its leadership in the past.

He said they didn’t understand as to how the corrupt people became clean after joining the PTI.

Coming down hard on the Awami National Party (ANP), the PPP leader recalled that the ANP leaders had introduced “easyload” culture during their rule.

Ridiculing the slogans of “Bacha khani pakar da”, he said that Bacha Khan and his companions were ideological people but the subsequent ANP leaders damaged his philosophy and promoted their vested interest.

He said despite making commitment with them, the ANP and Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl fielded candidates against the PPP nominees in Malakand.

He said his party would not enter into any alliance with ANP in the coming election.

The former minister asked the administration to take action against those who were violating the code of conduct set by the Election Commission of Pakistan. He said the PPP workers would remove the big banners and posters if these were not taken down within two days.

Zulfiqar Afghani announced that Irfanullah Shah would be PPP candidate for NA-31 Peshawar. The PPP had earlier allotted the ticket to former PTI minister Ziaullah Afridi, who accepted the decision and pledged support to Irfanullah Shah.