F.P. Report
LOWER DIR: Awami National Party central leader and former chief minister Ameer Haidar Khan Hoti has said that education will be his top priority if his party comes into power in the province again. He was addressing a party workers’ convention at Chakdara here late on Saturday.
He said that his party had come into power with the support of the people, not with the support of Generals and establishment. The convention was also addressed by the ANP central vice president Hussain Shah Yousafzai, district president Haji Bahadar Khan, party candidate for PK-16 Wasil Khan, tehsil president Allah Dad Khan and others. Several political activists on the occasion announced to join the ANP.
Hoti said the PTI chief ministers Pervez Khattak and Mehmood Khan had the support of Generals and establishment but where they were now. The ANP leader alleged that the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa was being targeted again as terrorists were carrying out sabotage acts. He said the ANP would never allow the perpetrators to succeed in their nefarious designs.
The former chief minister claimed the province had witnessed a record of development projects when he was the chief minister despite militancy being at its peak. He said the ANP had prioritized education in its tenure. “We established several universities”, he said, adding that higher education and gas would be taken into provincial authority if the ANP came in power again.
Delimitation: Speaking at a news conference at the Chakdara press club here on Sunday, the JUI-F deputy general secretary Bakht Naseem, JUI-F Kotigram emir Qari Hazrat Habib, Maulana Rahatul Mulk, Maulana Khan Badshah and others complained that the Kotigram union council had been illogically included in PK-15 Khall.
They said the people of Kotigram would never accept the election commission of Pakistan’s delimitation. The JUI-F activists said that the Kotigram union council was earlier part of the PK-16 Adenzai as geographically and historically it had been its part.
They demanded the ECP to include the Kotigram union council in PK-16 instead of PK-15.
A social activist Akbar Khan and workers of the Awami National Party also expressed reservation on delimitation of constituencies in Lower Dir. Talking to this reporter, they said that union council Mian Kalay, a major UC of Munda tehsil had been included in PK-18 without locals’ consent. They demanded the ECP to include the UC of Mian Kalay in PK-17.
However; the residents of Kambat, Darangal and Miskini union councils have expressed pleasure and satisfaction on its inclusion in PK-18 as earlier those UCs were part of PK-14 Lal Qila Maidan.
According to the preliminary delimitation, the number of provincial assembly seats in Lower Dir district remained the same as five in the previous term. However; some of the areas have been merged to new constituencies thus compelling locals to record their reservations. The PK-14 Lower Dir-1 has the Lal Qila tehsil and three union councils of Balambat tehsil including Lajbok, Hayaserai and Balambat.
Similarly PK-15 Lower Dir-11 has the Khall tehsil, Balambat tehsil excluding its three UCs and Kotigram union council of Adenzai tehsil. The rest of Adenzai tehsil has been made PK-16 Lower Dir III, Timergara tehsil and Munda tehsil excluding UC Mian Kalay has been declared PK-17 Lower Dir IV while Samarbagh tehsil and UC Mian Kalay of Munda has been declared PK-18 Lower Dir V.
