ABBOTTABAD: Interior minister Ahsan Iqbal on Wednesday asked political parties to shun the ‘politics of sit-in’, saying confrontational politics is harmful to national interests and gives a bad name to political parties.

He urged Pakistan Awami Tehreek leader Allama Tahirul Qadri to hold talks with the government or approach the relevant institutions for the resolution of his grievances instead of threatening agitation at a time when the country is passing through difficult times and is facing multiple threats from enemies.

The minister was talking to reporters in Havelian area here during the inspection of the Hazara Motorway to be inaugurated by Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi on Dec 28.

The motorway, work on which was inaugurated by former prime minister Nawaz Sharif in Nov 2014, will link Abbottabad with the main M-6 Islamabad-Peshawar Motorway reducing the distance between the district and federal capital to 45 minutes. The 60km six-lane project costing Rs34 billion was executed in two phases.

Says Sharif striving for a system where no one questions judiciary’s decisions

The minister was accompanied by National Assembly deputy speaker Murtaza Javed Abbasi, parliamentary leader in the KP Assembly Aurangzeb Nalotha and local PML-N leaders.

He showed satisfaction with the construction of the motorway.

Mr Ahsan said Nawaz Sharif was striving for the introduction of a system in which the people got justice without discrimination and no one raised questions about the judiciary’s decisions.

He said the ‘politics of sit-in’ had adversely affected the process of national development.

“We should progress fast to compete with rivals in the world, especially India. We cannot afford such kind of politics (of confrontation). We all should abandon this negative trend in politics and instead think for the country’s interests,” he said.

The minister Ahsan said the country would have to benefit from the golden opportunity offered by the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor project for its massive development.

He criticised Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf chief Imran Khan for damaging national interests by playing negative politics.

Earlier, the National Highway Authority chairman briefed him about the Hazara Motorway. The minister asked him to increase the number of trainee engineers on the project from 23 to 123 and said mostly young and junior engineers should be recruited on the minimum payment of Rs25,000 stipend for the CPEC related projects.

He also said locals should be given preference for such jobs.

The minister said the universities, whose campuses were located on the CPEC route, should be involved in the execution of such projects.

“The Taxila University, Hazara University, Abbottabad University and others where engineering departments exist should make their laboratories available for the CPEC related initiatives as where engineering departments exists so that their capabilities should also increase,” he said.

Published in Dawn, December 21st, 2017