Over CPEC: K-P govt warned to withdraw Section 4

Members say provincial government is misleading Pukhtuns

PESHAWAR: Members of Corridor Front have accused the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa government of intentionally misguiding the Pukhtun nation since it had already imposed Section 4 of the Land Acquisition Act, 1984 on the property for China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).

They gave a seven-day deadline to the provincial government to withdraw the section and terminate services of officials involved in the matter, otherwise it will protest against it.

Addressing a news conference at Peshawar Press Club, Corridor Front leader Dr Said Alam Mehsud said the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf-led provincial government has been criticising the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz administration since January for neglecting K-P in the mega project.



“[However], it appears to have been on the same page with the latter since it has imposed Section 4 on land acquisition for the project in Battagram district in 2015.”

Said Alam added the enemies of the project were none other than friends.

He also presented the notification to impose Section 4 before the media.

According to Said Alam, the provincial government was either misleading people or it had bargained with Islamabad for its own objectives.

The members of Corridor Front gave a week’s deadline to the provincial government to withdraw Section 4 and sack officials involved in the matter.

On the other hand, Adviser to Chief Minister on Information and Public Relations Mushtaq Ghani said the federal government had completely ignored K-P in the mega project.

He said after it had protested against the negligence, the federal government had given it a few mega projects.

“I am not aware of the developments,” Ghani told the media. “But what I do know is that we have managed to get something for our province which was not included initially by the federal government.”

Published in The Express Tribune, August 25^th, 2016.