KP Assembly seeks legal assistance for Pakistanis imprisoned in Saudi Arabia

PESHAWAR: The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly through a unanimous resolution on Thursday asked the federal government to increase the law staff at in Jeddah Saudi Arabia to provide legal assistance to thousands of Pakistanis imprisoned there for petty nature cases.

Pakistan People’s Party MPA from Dir Malik Badshah Salih in his resolution stated that about 1,863 Pakistanis had been languishing in the Saudi jails for petty cases but their trials could not be carried out on time for lack of resources and other documents.

He said the Pakistan embassy should provide legal assistance and use diplomatic channels for the release of the detained Pakistanis, most of them belonging to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The resolution was adopted unanimously. In another resolution, Awami National Party MPA from Swat, Waqar Ahmad Khan said thousands of people from Malakand division were working in the Gulf countries and for obtaining medical certificates and clearance, they come to Peshawar as there were no medical centres in the entire Malakand division.

He asked the provincial government to recommend to the federal government for establishing medical centres in Malakand and all divisional headquarters of the KP for those who wanted to go to Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries. Through a call attention notice, Jamaat-e-Islami MPA from Upper Dir Inayatullah Khan said a Campus of Engineering University was approved in Annual Development Program for Upper Dir in 2015-16 but to date, no construction work had been started on this project.

He asked the provincial government to execute the project at the earliest so that the talented students of Dir and adjacent districts could get admission in the campus.

The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly was also informed that the issue of promotion of senior science teachers (SST) from grade 16 to grade 17 would be taken up with chief minister next week.

Replying to an adjournment motion moved by opposition leader Akram Khan Durrani, Advisor to Chief Minister on Education Ziaullah Bangash said that he had held a meeting with a representative body of the SST last week and assured them that the upgrading issue would be discussed and resolved at the earliest.