SWABI: Awami National Party provincial president Ameer Haidar Khan Hoti on Tuesday ridiculed the pledge made by Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf chief Imran Khan prior to the last general elections that his party would construct 350 small dams in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to eradicate the menace of loadshedding.

Addressing party workers at Zaida and various other areas here, he said that Imran Khan had made the slogan of constructing dams to attract the people to his party, but he had failed to deliver on his pledge, which, he added, would backfire in the coming general elections.

“Soon after the announcement about dams was made, we declared that it was an empty pledge and it has proved to be so,” he said.

Mr Hoti alleged that Mr Khan was misleading people of other provinces that he had initiated and completed mega projects in KP, but the ground realities were to the contrary.

About the alleged attempts to roll back the 18th Constitutional Amendment, Mr Hoti said the ANP would resist any such move.

About the Fata merger with KP, he said that the process was intentionally delayed by the government. The delay is stressing out the people of Fata, he remarked. “The ANP wants early Fata-KP merger. There is no room for more delay,” he declared.

The ANP, the former chief minister said would call a multiparty conference to address the issues the Pakhtuns were confronting.

Ameer Rehman, ANP district president, and the party’s election candidates also addressed the functions.

ARREST OF LAWYER’S KILLERS DEMANDED: The Swabi Bar Association on Tuesday demanded arrest of the killers of a local lawyer who was shot dead a few days ago.

Zainullah Khan Advocate of Kala area was shot dead by unidentified assailants when he was on way back home from the Swabi’s main bazaar.

Daniyal Khan Advocate, the newly- elected president of the bar, said the police should make all out efforts to arrest the attackers. He said Zainullah had no enmity with anyone.

Published in Dawn, April 4th, 2018