QWP urges opp parties to shun differences

MANSEHRA: Qaumi Watan Party (QWP) head Aftab Ahmad Khan Sherpao on Sunday urged the opposition parties to set aside petty differences.

Addressing a gathering in Mansehra district, he said that the PDM parties should rise above vested interests and strive to get the country rid of the selected government. “I also request the political parties, which quit the Pakistan Democratic Movement to think about the people,” he added.

QWP Central Deputy General Secretary Ahmad Nawaz Khan Jadoon, Provincial Chairman Sikandar Hayat Khan Sherpao, former provincial minister Ibrar Hussain Tanoli, former Member Provincial Assembly Dr Faiza Rasheed and others were also present on the occasion.

Criticising the government for the anti-poor budget, he said an unelected person presented the budget, which spoke volumes about the seriousness of the rulers to mitigate the sufferings of the have-nots.

Rejecting the 10 percent increase in the salaries and pension, he said that the government protected the interest of the rich people.

“The salary and pension should have been raised by 20 percent,” he said, adding that the government did not take any step to give relief to the poor strata of the society.

He also expressed concern over the government’s proposal to increase the prices of the petroleum products by 26 rupees per litre to achieve the Rs610 billion levy target, saying that it would cause unprecedented inflation.

The government, he said, had pledged to give Rs100 billion to the merged districts every year for 10 years, but it allocated only Rs54 billion in the federal budget. He added that the shortage of funds would hamper the efforts to rebuild the damaged infrastructure in the ex-Fata.

He said that as per the budget statistics, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa would receive less allocation of funds under the Public Sector Development Programme as compared to other provinces.

He said that though the government did not raise the power tariff, it would jack up the electricity prices after having talks with the International Monetary Fund. The government would unveil a mini-budget to raise the power tariff, he added.

The QWP leader said that the figures about the growth rate were not correct and the government had fudged the data. The government would not be able to meet the revenue target set in the federal budget and it would rely on foreign loans, he said.

Opposing the e-voting system, the QWP leader said the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) was planning to steal the next general election through electronic voting. “The PTI leaders know that they are going to face a humiliating defeat in the next polls so they want the e-voting to rig the election,” he added.

Aftab Sherpao said that Tanawal would be given the status of a district if his party was voted to power. He said it was the QWP, which strived to help Darband get the status of a tehsil.

He demanded the government to carry out uplift projects under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor in Mansehra.

Meanwhile, addressing a press conference, Aftab Sherpao said that Punjab and Sindh had been using the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s water share but the federal government didn’t pay its charges for the last many years.