Futile exercise

PTI's absence from the All-Party Conference on Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa's security crisis.

Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Governor Faisal Karim Kundi convened an All-Party Conference to address the deteriorating security situation in the province. However, PTI, the province's ruling party, was notably absent from the conference. The province has been grappling with rising terrorism and militancy, particularly in areas like Kurram, where sectarian violence and unrest have escalated dramatically in recent months. In recent weeks, many high-casualty attacks have taken place in the province, bringing back memories from the dark days of a decade ago. In such a situation, one must ask what good an APC would be if the ruling party of the province is missing from the conference. If any long-lasting and credible solution is to be found, all political stakeholders need to be on the same page. At the same time, such important events should not be used for political point scoring. A consensus needs to be reached and all parties should sincerely make an effort to protect and better the lives of those who have chosen them to be their representatives.

For PTI, a realignment of priorities is the need of the hour. Rather than wholly focusing on national-level politics - which have netted debatable gains - it should focus on issues that represent a clear and present danger to not only K-P but to the nation as well. Regardless of its differences with the ruling party at the Centre and the provincial governor, PTI should have attended the conference for the greater good. PTI's absence will only give the party's political opponents more ammunition to target it in the ongoing war of rhetoric. Neglecting K-P's growing security crisis is not only politically shortsighted but also dangerous, as it risks further alienating the people of the province. In the face of this festering crisis, the political leadership in K-P and at the Centre must rise above party lines and adopt a united stance to address the security situation.