ISLAMABAD (The Thursday Times) — Governor’s rule in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa will end after six months, but the emergency will stay in place until peace is restored, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Tariq Fazal Chaudhry told the National Assembly on Wednesday, as he announced a Rs160 billion package for the province.
“Governor’s rule will end after six months. As for the emergency, our objective is to restore peace within six months, and we pray to Allah Almighty that we achieve this goal. The emergency will remain in place until peace is restored,” Chaudhry said, responding to JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman and PTI chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan, The Express Tribune reported.
The whole province, not 12 districts
Chaudhry said governor’s rule had been imposed across the entire province under Article 234 of the Constitution and the emergency under Article 232, rejecting suggestions that the measures covered only 12 districts. Those 12, the worst hit by terrorism, have been given special status so that police and security agencies there can seek help directly from the federal government.
Rs160 billion in three phases
The minister said Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif approved the Rs160 billion package at an Apex Committee meeting at Governor House in Peshawar, attended by Chief of Defence Forces and Army Chief Field Marshal Asim Munir. The first phase will equip the provincial police with modern weapons, armoured vehicles and training; the second will go to health, education, sanitation and infrastructure; and the third to projects he said had stalled during 12 years of PTI rule. Most of the money will go to the 12 worst-hit districts, which the government aims to clear of terrorists within four to six months before handing law and order back to the police.
Opposition cries foul
Fazlur Rehman called for a new Charter of Democracy, while Gohar condemned what he called political victimisation in the province and accused the government of installing a particular party. Chaudhry said no political party had been given a share of the provincial government’s powers and that the advisory council and council of elders set up after governor’s rule included no party representatives. President Asif Ali Zardari imposed the emergency and governor’s rule on October 11, suspending the PTI-led provincial government.
