ANP slams delay in local polls

PESHAWAR:

The Awami National Party (ANP) Provincial President, Mian Iftikhar Hussain, has said that the failure of the provincial government to announce new local government elections is deeply regrettable and tantamount to a deviation from the democratic process.

He stated that an effective, empowered, and active local government system is the need of the hour in the province, but the incompetent provincial government is trying to evade it.

Hussain further remarked that in the previous local government term, the provincial government had deceived and mocked the public in the name of the local government system. When the ruling party faced a crushing defeat, it deprived other elected representatives of funds and powers throughout their tenure. When the elected local representatives protested for their constitutional rights, they were met with brutal violence, a clear violation of democratic values.

Mian Iftikhar Hussain made it clear that the ANP has always advocated for autonomous, empowered, and strong local governments.