Kundi warns of “uncontrollable” security situation

Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Governor Faisal Karim Kundi has stated that there is a need to take the law and order situation in the province seriously. He stressed that the provincial assembly should hold discussions on a single-point agenda, warning that if the situation worsens further, it will be very difficult to control.

He highlighted the need to strengthen the Kurram Peace Jirga, adding that if the decisions of the Jirga are not implemented, it would be useless. He also called for construction of an alternative route to Kurram to permanently avoid future unfortunate incidents and promised to discuss this with the National Highways Authority (NHA) and other relevant authorities.

The governor highlighted the need for collective and concrete actions to ensure the proper utilization of provincial resources and ensure provincial rights. He mentioned that Sindh is improving its institutions for better management of resources and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa also needs a team to stabilize its institutions for optimal utilization of resources.

He shared these views during a meeting with editors-in-chief and publishers of Peshawar newspapers at the Governor House on Friday. A special lunch was organized in honor of the editors. The meeting was attended by several media representatives including All Pakistan Newspaper Society (APNS) Provincial President Pir Haroon Shah and Council of Pakistan Newspaper Editors (CPNE) President Tahir Farooq. A detailed discussion was held on the overall situation in the province, focusing on law and order, economic challenges and political conditions.

During the meeting, the governor expressed concern over the deteriorating law and order situation and mentioned that for the first time in history, an All Party Conference (APC) was convened at the Governor House to address rights provincial. It was unanimously decided to form two committees, one political and the other technical, to present the province’s problems to the federal government in an effective and logical manner. He stated that these committees are working actively and will soon prepare recommendations to be sent to the federal government.

The APC agreed to the immediate release of the 11th NFC Award as well as the release of the 3% NFC allocation for the former FATA region, which has not been provided for the last five years. He highlighted the need to implement the recommendations of the Sartaj Aziz Committee, make adjustments to the new NFC Award based on the population census of the province and the inclusion of forestry and environmental factors in the NFC formula. It also called for federal infrastructure support for the province’s share of water resources, as outlined in the 1991 Water Agreement.

Addressing the situation in the merged Kurram district, the governor regretted the recent incidents and criticized the provincial chief minister for not addressing the matter seriously.