MANSEHRA: Muttahida Kohistan Jirga on Sunday ended the five-day-long blockade of Karakoram Highway as a goodwill gesture on the “unconditional” release of its leader, Maulana Kareemdad, who was arrested under Section 3 of Maintenance of Public Order last week.

“We are clearing the KKH to traffic as a goodwill gesture, but wouldn’t allow laying of transmission lines from Dasu dam to the national grid until Wapda honours its 2022 agreement made with the people of Kohistan region,” MPA Sajadullah Baqi, a leader of the jirga, told protesters.

The protesters gathered at RMP Chowk in the Pattan area of Lower Kohistan at around 11am and resumed the blockade of the artery on the fifth day after the overnight suspension.

“We are not terrorists. We are law-abiding and peace-loving people, and will foil all conspiracies being hatched against the mega energy projects underway on our soil,” Mr Baqi said.

MPA demands free power, reconstruction of flood-hit roads

He said that the Hazara division commissioner and deputy commissioners of Upper and Lower Kohistan and Kolai-Palas districts were the guarantors of the agreement, and if Wapda failed to address all their outstanding issues, they would take to the streets.

“We are wrapping up our blockade of KKH and will hold talks with Wapda officials for provision of free electric supply, reconstruction of roads, schools and health facilities destroyed in the 2002 flash floods,” Mr Baqi said.

Earlier, the protesters warmly received Maulana Kareemdad after he was set free.

Protest Threatened

Chairmen of village and neighbourhood councils on Sunday warned the government of street protests if it failed to release development funds for them.

“The government recently released funds to only 51 out of 131 tehsil councils across the province, where Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf-backed candidates were elected in the local body elections held three years ago,” Basharat Ali Swati, general secretary of Local Bodies Ittehad, told a presser here.

Flanked by other office-bearers of the Ittehad, he said a meeting of village and neighbourhood councils was held in Mansehra, where it was decided that streets protests would be launched if the provincial government did not release funds to 4,211 village and neighbourhood councils across the province.

“The government has discriminated against tehsil chairmen from other political parties as 80 tehsil councils are still deprived of these funds,” Mr Swati added.

He explained that the meeting, attended by chairmen of village and neighbourhood councils from various parts of the district, decided on the agitation plan if development funds were not released.

“We are in constant contact with our provincial body in Peshawar, which is scheduled to meet on Monday (today) to finalise our future course of action,” Mr Swati said.

“The PTI government is trying to divide local government representatives in the province for its vested interests by depriving the majority of tehsil councils of funds. We will never allow such conspiracies to succeed,” he said.

“Due to the government’s apathy, the grassroots-level governance system introduced three years ago is on the verge of collapse,” he lamented.

Published in Dawn, December 9th, 2024