World News | All Party Meeting in Pakistan's KPK Raises Concern over Law, Order; Imran Khan's Party Boycotts

Peshawar, Dec 5 (PTI) An All-Parties Conference (APC) convened on Thursday by the governor of Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa expressed grave concern over the deteriorating law and order situation in the province.

The APC was attended by representatives from 16 major political parties.

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However, jailed former prime minister Imran Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, which has ruled the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province for the last 12 years, did not attend, citing objections over the governor's authority to call such a meeting.

Governor Faisal Karim Kundi called the conference to address thorny issues such as establishing peace, enhancing the security situation, and tackling the financial challenges facing the province, according to an official release issued by the Governor's office.

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Kundi presented a 14-point joint declaration following the day-long conference. The declaration expressed grave concern over the deteriorating law and order situation in the province, highlighting a sharp rise in violence compared to the previous year.

Over 70 security personnel were killed last month alone, and more than 200 lives were lost in sectarian violence in Kurram district.

"The central and provincial governments appear to have failed in maintaining law and order," the declaration stated.

The conference also established a Political Committee and a Technical Committee representing all political parties to safeguard the province's financial and political interests.

The declaration called for reopening all historic trade routes on the Pak-Afghan border for unrestricted trade.

Meanwhile, Barrister Saif, Information Advisor to the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur, asserted that the conference concluded with the understanding that under the 18th Amendment of the Pakistani Constitution, executive powers rest with the chief minister. He questioned why the APC was convened if the chief minister holds these powers.

"I had already stated that the purpose of the APC was nothing more than political point-scoring," Saif said.

He further emphasised that there was no need to form committees and that Governor Kundi should directly approach the federal government to secure the province's rights.

Saif pointed out that last year, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa received Rs 93 billion for countering terrorism, while Rs 106 billion was spent solely on merged districts. He also highlighted the federal government's failure to provide Khyber Pakhtunkhwa with its agreed share of funds based on population for these districts.

Asserting that Chief Minister Gandapur has taken practical steps to address these issues, Saif said that Rs 7 billion had been allocated to enhance the police's capacity in merged districts, and last week, the Chief Minister approved Rs 1 billion for the Counter-Terrorism Department.

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)