Condolence reference arranged for late party leader Kifayat Ali

NOWSHERA: Qaumi Watan Party (QWP) Chairman Aftab Sherpao said on Sunday the process of accountability should be carried out in a transparent manner.

He was speaking at the condolence reference for deceased party leader Kifayat Ali Advocate here.

Paying tribute to Kifayat Ali, he said the party would always remember him for his services for the cause of democracy.

Aftab Sherpao said the way the process of accountability was being carried out would lead to political tension. He said the rulers were creating problems for those who had brought them into power.

“The way the Parliament is being run will have negative impact on the political situation in the country,” he remarked.

The QWP leader said the foreign minister recently visited four countries but the outcome of his visits was not known.

He criticised the provincial government for wasting millions of rupees on the establishment of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Ehtesab Commission (KPEC) which was recently abolished.

“The KPEC cost the provincial exchequer over Rs1 billion during the four years of its existence,” he maintained. He said the government admitted that the commission failed to check corruption.

Calling for steps to improve bilateral relations with Afghanistan, Sherpao said, “Now the US is also willing to hold negotiations to end the Afghan conflict so Pakistan should also play its role to bring peace to the war-torn country.”

Aftab Sherpao warned the rulers against amending the 18th Amendment, saying it would create more despondency among the smaller units of the federation.

He demanded that Khyber Pakhtunkhwa should be given its due share in projects in the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor Project.

Aftab Sherpao said though the erstwhile Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) had been merged into Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the tribal people were yet to benefit from it in the absence of regular courts.

He urged the government to set up regular courts in the tribal districts merged with KP to ensure the dispensation of quick justice to the people.

Speaking on the occasion, senior leader of the Awami National Party (ANP) Abdul Lateef Afridi said a Loya Jirga would be convened in an effort to secure the rights of the Pakhtuns.

He said the Pakhtuns were faced with a host of issues. “A war has been imposed on the Pakhtun land for the last almost 40 years and nobody is owning it,” he lamented.

The ANP leader said a large number of Pakhtun had been killed in this war. He said the war going on in Afghanistan is an important issue which has affected Pakistan as well. “This is why a Loya Jirga has been planned to take up this and all other related issues,” he explained while giving the background to the proposed initiative.

Abdul Lateef Afridi, who is a senior lawyer, said all sections of the Pakhtun society would be invited to the Jirga. “All the issues faced by the Pakhtuns will be placed before the Jirga to help prepare a line of action to have them resolved,” he elaborated.

He said the Pakhtuns were living in own areas in Balochistan and had language and culture. He said Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) had ceased to exist after the merger with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. “ We can make a larger province by including the Pakhtuns of Balochistan in this province,” he added.

Abdul Lateef Afridi said intellectuals, writer, poets and academicians along with Mehmood Khan Achakzai would be invited to the proposed Loya Jirga.

He also talked of other problems faced by the Pakhtuns such as power and gas load-shedding, unemployment and said serious efforts were needed to discuss these problems and propose solutions accordingly.