Reports of rift between governor, CM echo in KP Assembly

PESHAWAR: The reports of a rift between governor and chief minister echoed in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly on Monday as the House accepted for debate the resolution of Inayatullah Khan of Jamaat-e-Islami about the handing over of the administrative affairs of erstwhile Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) to Governor Shah Farman during the transitional period.

Inayatullah Khan, who is a former provincial minister and was elected from Upper Dir district in the July 2018 general election, said there were reports in the media about the differences between the governor and chief minister. He said one reason for the differences as mentioned in the media was the handing over of the administrative affairs of the merged districts to the governor for a transitional period.

“The matter is of utmost importance as the government had assured bringing the reforms in one year and holding local bodies and the provincial assembly elections by June this year,” he argued. There should be a debate on the issue in the House and the government should clarify its position, he added.

Opposition leader Akram Khan Durrani, who belongs to the JUI-F, also supported the proposal for debate on the issue and said the situation with regard to ex-Fata was unclear. He said the government instead of strengthening the office of chief secretary and inspector general of police transferred both the senior officers with a single stroke of a pen. He argued this belied the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) claims of initiating reforms and ensuring transparency.

He said after the merger the tribal areas should be under the direct control of the chief minister, but the governor was trying to run the administrative and financial affairs of the merged districts.

Akram Durrani said after the Khaisor incident in North Waziristan, the maternal uncle of Hayat Khan was found killed. “What is going on in the tribal areas should be discussed in the House and the people of merged districts should be provided relief instead of unleashing cruelties against them,” he maintained.

However, Law Minister Sultan Mohammad Khan said defunct Fata was now part of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and the chief minister was its administrative head. He said provincial cabinet was giving approval to the measures needed in the merged districts. The recent notification of sessions and civil judges was its example that the chief minister was the authority in erstwhile Fata, he pointed out. The House unanimously adopted the resolution demanding the shifting of the Wapda House from Lahore to Islamabad.