PESHAWAR
Leaders of opposition parties on Thursday criticized the demands made by Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister during a public gathering in Peshawar, describing it as illogical and irrational besides an attempt to put presure on state institutions to got favour for PTI jailed leader.
Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Swat President Wajid Khan claimed that the chief minister KP attempted to exert pressure on state institutions in an effort to secure favorable outcomes for the jailed founder of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI).
He maintained that the judiciary is independent and would decide the PTI founder’s case in accordance with the law.
Wajid Khan further claimed that the PTI public meeting failed to attract significant public participation, adding that people kept their distance from the gathering due to aimless agitation of the party that failed to address masses problems in its 14 years longest rule.
He said the people of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa were more concerned about employment opportunities, security and development, adding that, like previous occasions, they would reject PTI’s planned September 27 long march.
Meanwhile, Awami National Party (ANP) leader and former provincial minister Sardar Hussain Babak also criticized the PTI leadership, accusing it of using provincial government resources to organize what he described as a flopped public meeting in Peshawar.
In a statement, Babak alleged that official administrative machinery was utilized to facilitate the party’s political event. He urged the provincial administration and civil servants to remain politically neutral and refrain from participating in partisan activities.
He stressed that public funds and government institutions should be used exclusively for public welfare rather than political campaigns. He also called on the relevant authorities to ensure transparency and prevent the misuse of official resources for political purposes.
Expressing concern over the security situation in KP, Babak claimed that incidents of terrorism had increased in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, citing recent attacks in Hangu and Swat as examples.
Instead of focusing on improving law and order and strengthening security, he alleged that the provincial government was concentrating on agitation politics to pressure institutions for the release of the convicted PTI founder.
Sardar Babak further claimed that unemployment and inflation had risen in the province, while the PTI-led government had failed to bring street children into the education system.
He concluded by claiming that despite months of political campaigning and the use of official machinery, PTI had failed to mobilize the masses for its yesterday meeting and that its public gathering did not receive the expected public response that unerved PTI leadership.
