PESHAWAR: The new PPP office-bearers for Khyber Pakhtunkhwa are likely to face the tough task of reorganising the party in the province as most of them are based in Islamabad.

The PPP’s central leadership recently made former provincial general secretary of the party Engineer Mohammad Humayun Khan the provincial president, former MNA Akhunzada Chattan vice-president ,former National Assembly deputy speaker Faisal Karim Kundi general secretary, Senator Robina Khalid information secretary and Usman Saifullah deputy general secretary.

Among them, only Humayun Khan is based in Peshawar.

All others live in Islamabad and are more interested in national politics, some party activists told Dawn.

Some activists insist most office-bearers based in Islamabad, more interested in national politics

Interestingly, Akhunzada Chattan belongs to Bajaur tribal agency.

Mohammad Humayun Khan has yet to begin work on the new assignment as he’s reportedly busy receiving congratulations from activists, supporters and sympathisers.

According to activists, most new provincial office-bearers are currently busy with the party’s foundation day celebrations at Bilawal Bhutto House in Lahore and that they will formally assume responsibilities and name people to vacant positions in the party after those celebrations are over.

The provincial cabinet’s positions had fallen vacant after the dissolution of all organisational units in the province in April 2016. Thereafter, a five-member coordination committee headed by former provincial president Rahimdad Khan was formed to hold meetings with workers to take them on board regarding the reorganisation process.

The fresh appointments to the party’s provincial chapter were made in light of the reports submitted by that committee.

Activists have welcomed the steps taken by top leadership to mobilise disgruntled ones and assured full support to the new cabinet for it.

However, Humayun Khan seem to face some challenges as his cabinet members are mostly based in Islamabad and are unlikely to visit Khyber Pakhtunkhwa so frequently to do the assigned tasks.

Some senior activists told Dawn that the appointment of Akhunzada Chattan was unprecedented because he belonged to Bajaur Agency and that he won’t be able to play any role in the strengthening of the party in settled areas of KP.

Similarly, other office-bearers are also stated to be Islamabad-based and interested in federal level politics.

Mr. Humayun Khan is optimistic about the response of his team members to future assignments, saying ‘all assumptions’ about new office-bearers are incorrect as the time will show them play active role in strengthening the party in the province.

He told Dawn that the task of reorganising the party in KP had been assigned by the top leadership and that office-bearers would prove their ability, sincerity, punctuality and loyalty.

Disclosing some of his top priorities, the new president said he had planned to shift the party’s secretariat to Dauranpur area along Motorway in Peshawar to ensure the access of workers to provincial leadership round the clock.

He said he would visit the houses of most workers, especially senior ones, to redress their grievances and activate them for playing effective role in reorganising the party in the province.

The provincial president didn’t say if he had been given the powers to interfere in the affairs of the party’s sister organisations, especially People’s Students Federation, People’s Youth Organisation and People’s Labour Bureau.

In the past, the provincial presidents had no control on these organisations with the central leaders handling their affairs. Humayun Khan is the tenth president of the party since Shaheed Hayat Mohammad Khan Sherpao occupied the positions for the first time.

The PPP has changed at least six provincial presidents during the last over one decade causing internal differences and thus, weakening itself in the province.

According to insiders, the provincial president will also face the challenge of taking along the ‘most senior ideologues’ who wanted the party to be run along democratic lines.

They say Peshawar has a great significance for political parties and the PPP will have to respect the opinion of seniors in order to restore its past strong position in the city, especially for the sake of electoral politics.

According to insiders, every political party has begun preparations for the 2018 general elections to win the maximum national and provincial assembly seats but the PPP has yet to do so.

“To ensure success in next elections, the new PPP leaders will have to remove internal differences once and for all and that, too, on concrete basis,” a party activist said.

Published in Dawn, December 4th, 2016