PESHAWAR
The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s (PTI) August 5 agitation call fell flat in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), with public turnout remaining dismal and political analysts calling it a failure.
Speaking to APP, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Nowshera President Hamza Khan said the protest of PTI was a “miserable failure,” highlighting that people distanced themselves from aimless rallies led by Chief Minister KP.
“The failed agitation has unnerved the PTI leadership, who are now trying to pacify workers with hollow slogans,” Hamza Khan remarked.
He criticized the PTI for prioritizing political theatrics over pressing issues like terrorism, which continues to claim the lives of innocent civilians in the province.
Hamza Khan further said the protest, held on August 5—a date symbolic of resistance against India’s illegal occupation of Jammu and Kashmir—sent a politically insensitive message. “PTI should have used the occasion to show unity, not division,” he added.
Leader of the Opposition in the KP Assembly, Dr. Ebad Khan, echoed similar sentiments, calling the protest a “complete flop.” He said the KP Chief Minister abandoned his workers in scorching heat, further demoralizing party supporters.
He alleged that the agitation was a tactical move by the PTI founder to mount pressure on state institutions for personal relief while in custody at Adiala Jail.
“The courts are free and functional,” Dr. Ebad said. “If three-time Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and now Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz can appear before courts, then why not the PTI founder?”
Hamza Khan also pointed to PTI’s disappointing performance during its over-a-decade-long rule in KP. He cited unfulfilled promises such as the creation of 10 million jobs and the construction of 5 million housing units, along with recent administrative failures, including the tragic drowning of 18 tourists in River Swat.
He criticized the party’s handling of development projects like the incomplete Arbab Niaz Stadium, stalled Metrobus commercial plazas, and declining standards in health and education services.
“Instead of addressing real issues of masses, PTI is attempting to drag the public with street protests to achieve its political objectives,” he concluded.
