Delawar Jan
PESHAWAR: Pakistan
Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), Qaumi Watan Party (QWP) and Jamaat-e-Islami (JI)
Thursday formally announced that they had acquired the required number of seats
to form government in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Pervez Khattak would be its next
chief minister.
In a press conference
which was marred by the disruptive behaviour of parties’ workers, leaders of
the three parties said they would work together to solve the complex problems
of the battered province. The chief minister-designate Pervez Khattak, QWP
chief Aftab Sherpao and JI’s Sirajul listed peace, local bodies’ elections and
elimination of power crisis and corruption as the top priority of the coalition
government.
The coalition has
claimed to be enjoying support of 64 MPAs in the 124-member assembly, the
strength sufficient to form government. “We are in contact with the
independents,” Khattak said. The press conference was held at Sherpao House in
the posh Hayatabad which was more like a political rally than a press
conference. MNA and MPA-elect of the three parties also attended the event.
“We need peace to make
progress. We need electricity that is crucial for economic growth,” Khattak
said and added they would achieve both. He said his government would honour the
promise that it would turn Governor’s House into an institution. However, he
said he continue to live in the plush Chief Minster House.
“Peace in this region
is essential for advancement. But for us to achieve peace, we need a strategy
and we will develop one,” Sherpao said, continuing to emphasise on the
importance of peace. He said all the coalition partners had agreed on a common
agenda. He said they had shared their respective agendas with each other and
found that they were on the same page with regard to putting the province on
track to peace and development. “Our common agenda is implementable,” Sherpao said.
“But the problems are complex that demand a strong and stable government and
firm resolve. That is the reason we have decided to work together to steer our
province out of crises,” he added.
The QWP chief said he
did not want a confrontational policy with the federal government but wanted to
join hands with the PML-N government for progress.
Sirajul Haq said no
party alone was capable of solving the issues of terrorism, load-shedding and
corruption. The likely finance minister of the province, he said Khyber
Pakhtunkhwa also faced economic challenges. “This province has been turned into
a comic show for the world,” he lamented.
Khattak said the
Pakhtuns’ land had witnessed devastation but the people who were elected to work
for the people furthered their own interests. He said that under his
administration people would be provided with an equal education system,
hospitals where people had all facilities and a police force that would serve
the masses instead of unleashing cruelty on them. “We will do away with all
injustices. We have agreement among us for turning this province into an
exemplary one,” the CM-designated boasted.
PTI’s provincial
president Asad Qaiser was conspicuous by his absence. He was a contender of the
post of the chief minister, but Imran Khan chose Pervez Khattak for the job.
Khattak said there was no issue between him and Qaiser. However, the latter
could not attend the event due to some engagements in Lahore.
Sherpao said the
coalition government would narrow down regional disparity in development. He
was pointing to the previous government that used most of the development funds
in Mardan and Charsadda.
Sirajul Haq said people
had accomplished their task to elect public representatives and now they were
expecting them to perform.
-------
No comments:
Post a Comment