New governor: Shah’s appointment assailed
Labour Party President accuses him of corruption, vote rigging.
GILGIT:
The president of Gilgit-Baltistan (G-B) Chapter of the Labour Party (L-P) criticised the appointment of Pir Karam Ali Shah as the new governor of G-B, saying that his appointment will push the region into further disarray.
“This man is responsible for the backwardness of his own people in Ghizer district,” Advocate Ahsan Ali, president of the local chapter of the party, told The Express Tribune by telephone on Tuesday.
Governor Shah has already served as the Deputy Chief Executive (DCE) back in 1994, when the Pakistan Peoples Party introduced a constitutional package for the region, making the DCE the head of the local government.
Ahsan Ali accused Shah of having “robbed” the people of his constituency and “acquiring property worth billions of rupees for himself”.
“As governor he will have another golden chance to expand his wealth and become richer,” he said.
Ali accused Shah of being one of the Watan Card beneficiaries following the 2010 floods, despite having property worth millions of rupees.
The L-P president said Shah will serve as a tool to divert attention from the challenges being faced by G-B government at the moment.
Predicting Shah’s performance as Governor G-B, Ali said that little could expected from a person who had done “nothing” for his people during his tenure as the Deputy Chief Executive of G-B.
He even cast doubt on Shah’s electoral mandate, saying that he won the election through state-backed rigging.
His chances of winning a free and fair election, according to Ali, were minimal. “The only thing he is capable of succeeding in is increasing his
own wealth.”
Published in The Express Tribune, February 2nd, 2011.
The president of Gilgit-Baltistan (G-B) Chapter of the Labour Party (L-P) criticised the appointment of Pir Karam Ali Shah as the new governor of G-B, saying that his appointment will push the region into further disarray.
“This man is responsible for the backwardness of his own people in Ghizer district,” Advocate Ahsan Ali, president of the local chapter of the party, told The Express Tribune by telephone on Tuesday.
Governor Shah has already served as the Deputy Chief Executive (DCE) back in 1994, when the Pakistan Peoples Party introduced a constitutional package for the region, making the DCE the head of the local government.
Ahsan Ali accused Shah of having “robbed” the people of his constituency and “acquiring property worth billions of rupees for himself”.
“As governor he will have another golden chance to expand his wealth and become richer,” he said.
Ali accused Shah of being one of the Watan Card beneficiaries following the 2010 floods, despite having property worth millions of rupees.
The L-P president said Shah will serve as a tool to divert attention from the challenges being faced by G-B government at the moment.
Predicting Shah’s performance as Governor G-B, Ali said that little could expected from a person who had done “nothing” for his people during his tenure as the Deputy Chief Executive of G-B.
He even cast doubt on Shah’s electoral mandate, saying that he won the election through state-backed rigging.
His chances of winning a free and fair election, according to Ali, were minimal. “The only thing he is capable of succeeding in is increasing his
own wealth.”
Published in The Express Tribune, February 2nd, 2011.