TIMERGARA: The Awami National Party on Wednesday rejected the government’s decision of setting up ‘tiger force’ to collect data of the poor to be given financial assistance and demanded assigning the task to the army and the district administrations.

Talking to mediapersons here, ANP’s Lower Dir president MPA Haji Bahadar Khan and general secretary Malik Mohammad Zeb said the party would bring people on roads if the survey was conducted by political activists.

They said former representatives of local government could also be involved for impartial, apolitical and transparent survey.

“We will not accept the data collection by PTI activists,” Mr Bahadar said, adding such surveys were conducted by LG representatives and the army after the 2005 earthquake and the 2010 floods.

The ANP leaders also demanded disinfection of the streets. They said prices of flour, ghee, sugar and vegetables had soared amid lockdown, and asked the government to take notice.

They also demanded exempting people from gas, power and telephone bills for at least six months.

Meanwhile, PPP leader Bakht Baidar Khan demanded provision of assistance to the poor through the district administrations.

Speaking at a news conference at Chakdara, he complained that coronavirus suspected patients and quarantined people had so far not been provided any relief. He alleged that the government wanted to compensate its workers in the garb of ‘tiger force’.

He said the nation and all political parties were united in the fight against the Covid-19, but the government’s policies would sabotage all such efforts.

He insisted the prime minister was spreading disappointment and unrest among the countrymen rather than taking concrete steps for controlling the virus spread.

PROTECTIVE GEAR: Al-Khidmat Foundation, Lower Dir president Fazal Mehmood on Wednesday said the charity had so far had distributed 7,000 masks, 5,000 sanitisers, Rs2,000 each among 110 labourers, and 15,000 awareness pamphlets and food packages among 100 families in Talash, 60 in Adenzai and 150 in Khall.

Talking to reporters, he said the organisation had also disinfected 350 mosques.

Published in Dawn, April 2nd, 2020