Opposition in KP Assembly accuses govt of discrimination in projects

PESHAWAR: Opposition in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly on Wednesday said the government was discriminating against the constituencies of the opposition members in the project funded by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) for construction of roads.

Laiq Muhammad Khan of the Awami National Party (ANP) raised the issue and demanded that his district Torghar should be included in the project.

He said that roads in his constituency were in a dilapidated condition and needed construction.

“The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government should refrain from discrimination in the uplift schemes as opposition members are also public representatives,” he added.

Taking part in the debate, opposition leader Muhammad Akram Khan Durrani said that ignoring the opposition in uplift schemes would not be tolerated. He reminded that parliamentary leaders of the opposition parties had assured support to the government in the development of the province in the larger national interest but the ruling party was instead discriminating against the opposition.

Akram Durrani, who is a former chief minister, said they did not want to discourage foreign donors but the government attitude might compel the opposition to stage protest and raise the issue with the donor concerned.

He said the opposition members’ constituencies should be given proper share in the project.

Inayatullah Khan, an MPA of the Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) from Upper Dir, supported the demand, saying international donors like JICA should not be made controversial and the opposition should not be forced to take the matters to the streets. Ignoring the opposition in the development project was a great injustice with the electorate, he argued.

ANP parliamentary leader Sardar Hussain Babak warned that the opposition would snatch their rights at all costs.

He said JICA had constructed roads in the province in the past as well and it was not an initiative of the PTI government alone. “Foreign donations should not be restricted to some areas and selected constituencies,” he maintained.

Sardar Hussain Babak, the lawmaker from Buner, warned of going to the courts if the opposition was refused its due share in the development funds. Khushdil Khan of the ANP also warned of knocking at the door of the court to seek justice in the matter.

Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) parliamentary leader Sardar Mohammad Yousaf said the opposition would extend help to the government for the rights of the province but would not accept injustice. Ignoring the opposition in the Rs20 billion JICA project was injustice and discrimination against the opposition, he added.

“The PTI was claiming of bringing justice but its government actually has deprived the people of justice,” he stressed. He said the political leaders, especially of the PML-N, were being victimised in the name of accountability. “There is no ehtesab but revenge and conspiracies are afoot to derail the system and weaken democracy,” he said.

He pointed out that Mian Nawaz Sharif was appearing in courts even though there was no proof against him.

“The former prime minister left his ailing wife and returned to the country just for the sake of democracy,” he said.

Sardar Yousaf, the former federal minister elected from Mansehra, said the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) was being used for political victimisation.

He said the arrest of Khwaja Saad Rafiq and Salman Rafiq, restricting Hamza Sharif not to go abroad and initiating inquiry against Maryam Aurangzeb were acts of victimisation as nobody can be arrested without conducting proper investigations.

Sahibzada Sanaullah, the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) MPA from Upper Dir, lashed out at the government for ignoring the opposition in distribution of uplift funds. He said the JICA project was going on during the past governments and was not an initiative of the PTI regime. He said all districts and lawmakers should be given share in the roads’ construction project irrespective of political affiliation.

Minister for Food Qalandar Khan Lodhi assured of resolving the issue with consensus and said the PTI government would not disappoint the opposition.

Earlier, Law Minister Sultan Muhammad presented the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Continuation of Laws in the erstwhile Provincially Administered Tribal Areas Bill 2018, KP Child Protection and Welfare (Amendment) Bill 2018, and KP Medical Teaching Institutions Reforms (Amendment) Bill 2018 in the assembly.