In the chaos: K-P refuses to scrap fledgling peace process

Says advisory committee will discuss law and order.

PESHAWAR:

Continuing the debate on the law and order situation of the province, senior minister Sirajul Haq asked the federal government to carry on with the peace process. He said that the Taliban and government should talk to each other directly at some point, as there were people on both side who wanted to sabotage the talks.

While speaking at Friday’s assembly session, he added that further lawlessness will bring in a new lot of internally displaced persons (IDPs) .

The minister blamed international actors for the country’s security problems. He claimed that reports showed 27 agencies were involved in the AfPak region and their aim was to take away the country’s atomic capability.

About the law and order situation, Haq said an advisory committee will be formed to discuss the situation in the province. The minister said the committee will include the chief minister, police chief, home secretary and opposition leaders. The session started with Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) lawmaker Mufti Syed Janan informing the house that the assistant commissioner (AC) of Hangu was trying to raise a lashkar in the district.

He proposed that a committee headed by the assembly speaker should be formed to keep an eye on the evolving situation.

Speaker Asad Qaiser took note of Janan’s claims that the Hangu AC and security officials were pressuring locals to raise lashkars and asked senior minister Sirajul Haq to explain the government’s position on the matter. Qaumi Watan Party (QWP) MPA Bakht Baidar Khan criticised the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf government saying it has failed to bring any improvement in the law and order.

“The present government and Taliban nominated committees cannot bring peace. Notable elders from K-P and the Federally Administered Tribal Areas should have been made a part of the process,” he said. “Giving an office in Peshawar to militants will not solve anything,” Khan contended.

Taking the floor, QWP lawmaker Sultan Mohammad Khan said it was the state’s responsibility to protect its populace.

Sultan proposed the government should set up an intelligence coordination agency aimed towards overcoming terrorism, enhanced investigation and prosecution of militants.

Toward’s the end of the session, QWP members staged a brief walkout after Farman’s speech as the speaker did not allow the party’s Anisa Zeb to clarify a point.

Awami National Party legislator Syed Jaffer Shah claimed the government’s flawed policies had led to the assembly discussing law and order again in less than six months.

“On one hand the provincial government is having problems with the bureaucracy and on the other hand it is also having issues with the centre,” he remarked.

Shah proposed an in-camera session of the house during which lawmakers should be briefed by law enforcement officials regarding why militancy remains uncontrollable.

Meanwhile, the house unanimously adopted a resolution which asked for official vehicles for District Development Advisory Committee chairpersons from 25 districts of the province.

The assembly was adjourned till Monday, February 24.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 22^nd, 2014.