Govt appoints Yahya Akhunzada to K-P administration

The federal government on Sunday notified the appointment of Muhammad Yahya Akhunzada to the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) government, according to an official notification.

A Grade-20 officer of the Pakistan Administrative Service (PAS), Akhunzada was previously serving as an additional secretary at the Prime Minister’s Office.

He has also served as additional political agent for South and North Waziristan, secretary of health, information and education in K-P, and commissioner of Dera Ismail Khan. Akhunzada hails from Charsadda district of K-P.

According to the notification, his services have been placed at the disposal of the K-P government under Section 10 of the Civil Servants Act, 1973. The appointment will remain effective until further orders.

Federal cabinet approves emergency rule in K-P

The federal cabinet on Sunday recommended imposing emergency rule in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) amid a deteriorating security situation and the provincial government’s deliberate disengagement from the fight against terrorism.

The cabinet, which met under the chairmanship of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, reviewed the worsening law and order situation in the province and was briefed on the rising threat of terrorism, according to a statement issued by the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO).

In view of the gravity of the situation, the cabinet recommended that the prime minister advise President Asif Ali Zardari to invoke his constitutional powers under Articles 232 and 234 of the Constitution to impose emergency rule in the province.

The PMO said the advice had been forwarded to the President’s House.

Emergency plan

According to sources, K-P Governor Faisal Karim Kundi had sent the prime minister a written explanation of the grounds for emergency measures about a week earlier, as part of the legal requirements for the proposed intervention.

The reported advice argues that the province's law and order situation has deteriorated to the point where imposing an emergency has become necessary. Following cabinet approval, the prime minister is expected to send the advice to the president. The emergency would take effect after presidential approval, according to the sources.

The cabinet division is expected to place the relevant summary before the cabinet on Sunday, potentially through circulation. Sources said a notification detailing the imposition of governor's rule and emergency would be issued following the required approvals.

The proposals reportedly include administrative changes across the province, particularly replacing the incumbent chief secretary with a new, stronger administrator to oversee provincial affairs. Other senior officials could also be transferred.

Read: Tarar lambasts PTI, K-P government

Sources have separately indicated that the federal government is considering imposing an emergency in 12 districts, including eight merged tribal districts- Khyber, Kurram, Orakzai, Bajaur, Mohmand, North Waziristan, South Waziristan and Lower South Waziristan- as well as Dera Ismail Khan, Tank, Bannu and Lakki Marwat. Another proposal under consideration would transfer certain important provincial powers to the federal government.

Naqvi, speaking informally to journalists, suggested that the government believed its options for resolving the standoff had narrowed considerably.

"What scope remains for not imposing an emergency?" he asked, urging journalists to consider how the situation could be resolved.

Naqvi said the government had made extensive efforts to find a solution and those involved could themselves explain the extent of those efforts. "We have no room left now," he said.