MARDAN: Senior Minister for Tourism Mohammad Atif Khan said on Friday that steps were being taken to promote tourism in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
“The Tourism Act has been passed from the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly and it will help promote the positive image of the province in the world,” he said while speaking at Meet-the-Press programme at the Mardan Press Club here.
Earlier, Mardan Press Club President Lutfullah Lutaf and General Secretary Bashir Adil welcomed the senior minister on his arrival at the press club and informed him about the problems of the local journalists.
Commenting on the Azadi march of Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F), he said that Maulana Fazlur Rahman has become unemployed after 17 years. “He should fulfil his desire to march on Islamabad,” he
Atif Khan added that staging protest was one’s right. However, he said that he was holding the protest as he has become jobless.
“Maulana Fazlur Rehman was the Chairman of Kashmir Committee for a long time,” he added.
He added the Maulana has lost all the privileges attached with the prized position. The senior minister said that the government has not filed any case against the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz leaders. He believed that the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) had full authority to expose corruption.
Atif Khan added that the looters would be held accountable and no-one would be spared. He added that sports complex and playgrounds were being established in different parts of the province to attract youth to positive activities.
Atif Khan added that billions of rupees have been spent on the development of Mardan. He also mentioned the master plan for sewerage system across the district.
He added that 35 playgrounds would be constructed for which a substantial amount of Rs500 million has been allocated while Rs200 million has been allocated for the culture hall.
The senior minister added that a gymnasium for women was under-constructed. He added that Rs15 million would be spent on tourism facilities to have access to the archaeology site in Takht Bhai, Jamal Garhi and Shahbaz Garhi.
The senior minister said that media and politics were linked with each other. He added that the government believed in media freedom.
He said that resolving problems of the working journalists was the top priority of the government. He added that constructive criticism would be welcomed.
