Hostile remarks

The Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa chief minister wants evidence – of something that is visible to the whole world. Sohail Afridi wants the state of Pakistan to present evidence in support of what he calls allegations of use of Afghan soil for terrorism in Pakistan. One wonders whether Mr Afridi, the chief executive of a terror-riven territory bordering Afghanistan, is not aware of a host of regional huddles, including Moscow Format, China-Afghanistan-Pakistan Trilateral Forum, etc, as well as reports from credible world bodies, including the United Nations and the Brussels-based International Crisis Group, that have concluded that Afghanistan is the epicentre of terrorism in the region. He cannot be naïve enough to be ignorant of the fact that there is no country in the region – except for India, of course – that does not have its subversive radicals holed up inside Afghanistan? Pakistan, China, Iran, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan – you name it!

The irresponsible, rather hostile, remarks on a matter of national importance were bound to elicit official reaction. Federal Information Minister Attaullah Tarar rightly termed the CM's statement made at an event during his recent visit to Karachi "highly condemnable and shameful".

Mr Afridi did sound like a spokesperson for Afghanistan, as the information minister remarked. Well, the K-P CM, being the custodian of the rights of the people of his province, has all the right to air his reservations over plans of a military operation against TTP.

However, his position warrants conveying things in a careful and responsible manner. Wouldn't it be better for him to approach the federal government in a formal, official way? Likewise, the dispensation at the Centre, which felt fulfilled with a mere tit-for-tit response, must engage the helmsman in the province and give a patient hearing to his stance on tackling terrorism. A national consensus on the issue is a must!