Asfandyar elected ANP head for sixth consecutive term

PESHAWAR: Asfandyar Wali Khan was elected as president of the Awami National Party for the sixth consecutive term on Thursday.

Former provincial minister Mian Iftikhar Hussain also retained his position as the party’’s central general secretary while Ameer Haider Khan Hoti was elected unopposed as senior-vice president. Zahid Khan became the ANP information secretary at the intra-party election held at the Bacha Khan Markaz, the party’s headquarters in Peshawar.

Other office-bearers include Hussain Shah Yousafzai as vice-president, Sahib Jan Kakar, additional general secretary, Syed Aqil Shah secretary for foreign affairs, Haji Hidayatullah finance secretary, Syed Laiq Bacha, secretary culture and Amarjeet Malhotra, secretary for minorities.

Speaking after the election, Asfandyar Wali condemned the accountability process in the country as he claimed it was selective. The judiciary had set separate standards of accountability for Nawaz Sharif and Jehangir Tareen, he added.

The NAB gave a clean chit to those who joined the PTI and continued harassing the opponents of the ruling party, he said. “If the sister of former president (Asif Ali Zardari) could appear before the NAB then why not Aleema Khan, the sister of Imran Khan” he asked.

He demanded the NAB to open the cases of Peshawar Bus Transit project, Malam Jabba land scandal and Billion Tree Tsunami in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. He added that the NAB should not ask the victims to prove their innocence as it was the bureau’s responsibility to produce evidence against them.

“The country’s economy is on ventilator,” Asfandyar Wali said, adding, nobody could save the country from a bloody revolution if the middle class vanished from the country.

He said Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government had failed to deliver anything in its more than eight months rule as none of its electoral promises had been fulfilled.

He said Imran Khan had been cursing the previous leaders for unnecessary borrowing but his government continued the same practice that he had been opposing.

“The PTI government had borrowed the same amount in nine months which the previous government borrowed in its entire five-year term” he pointed out.

He said the federal government had started complaining about economic problems when the provinces got their due rights after the passage of the 18th Constitutional Amendment.

Arguing that the country was passing through a critical phase he questioned the rationale behind the establishment’s move to give the government to PTI. “They should now think whether their decision was right,” he remarked.

Asfandyar Wali alleged that Imran Khan had introduced a culture of vulgarity in politics by using abusive language against political opponents. He regretted that 16 ministers in the cabinet were not elected representatives.

He pointed out that Imran Khan despite being the chief proponent of establishing “Riasat-e-Madina” had sent his children to live in Europe.

Commenting on the speculation that presidential system could be introduced in the country, the ANP leader warned of the repercussions of such an adventurism.

“The country will not survive if presidential system was imposed,” he added.

Asfandyar Wali Khan said the government was planning to construct five million houses even though it had no penny.

He condemned the recent incident in Mohmand tribal district and demanded exposing the people involved in it. “The fingers are being pointed at a specific direction and that could prove fatal for the country’s integrity,” he warned.

He said the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government should have been given control of the merged districts but “unfortunately the governor is calling the shots.”

The ANP chief said the administration imposed section 144 when his party planned a rally in Bajaur tribal district but it turned out the prime minister and chief minister were holding rallies there.