PESHAWAR
Amun Taraqqi Party (ATP) chairman Muhammad Faiq Shah welcomed the announcement of the deposed prime minister Imran Khan for returning to parliament for formation of a caretaker setup.
He, however, said the members of treasury and opposition benches should build up a national consensus and bring reforms through legislation to hold next general elections in a free, fair and transparent elections.
Shah while chairing a meeting here at the party’s central secretariat on Wednesday emphasized it is a dire need of the hour that the government should welcome the returning of PTI MNA to the National Assembly because intensification in current political chaos wasn’t in the best interest of the country.
Both members of the treasury and opposition benches should agree on a joint reform agenda and pave the way for the elections, which should be conducted in a transparent manner, he added.
Shah hailed the sailing of State Bank of Pakistan (Amendment) Bill 2021 with majority votes through the Senate, saying that the bill seeks to rectify unjustified and inequitable credit lending that has been the long-standing demand of the smaller provinces.
He expressed hope the legislation will ensure that the minimum credit/lending of commercial banks to the private sector for establishing industry and commercial activities in smaller provinces is at par with those provinces’ total deposits.
The ATP chief severely condemned the assassination of renowned jurist and former president of Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) Abdul Latif Khan Afridi, saying that happening of firing incident inside bar room and presence of heavily guarded building of Peshawar High Court by police force is a great question mark and tantamount to major security failure.
He voiced concern over the deteriorating security situation in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and elsewhere in the country. He called for revisiting the National Action Plan (NAP) that had been devised with consensus of all political parties and stakeholders after the gruesome attack of Army Public School Peshawar.
Commenting on the mediation offer to United Arab Emirates (UAE) of Prime Minister Shehbaz for bringing Pak-India together, which he made during an interview with Al Arabiya news channel, Faiq said that peaceful and prosperous South Asia is imperative for sustainable economic growth, calm and progress.
Furthermore, he added regional integration and economic development cannot be possible without promotion of cordial relations between South Asia countries.
Therefore, the ATP chief gave heavily to the PM’s offer to UAE for an exhorting role in bringing Pakistan and India together and resolving all outstanding and burning among arch rival issues, including Kashmir.
Talking about the dissolution of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab Assemblies, Shah said the government and opposition have locked horns over the issue and to linger on the political chaos.
He urged the government and opposition to settle all issues by holding negotiations and jointly bring electoral reforms to pave the way for fresh polls which should be conducted in a fair and transparent manner.
Shah hailed the likely merger of the PML-Q faction with PTI. He added that a united opposition is in dire need to sail a holistic reforms agenda through parliament.
