Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Muhammad Sohail Afridi. Photo: File
PESHAWAR:
Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Chief Minister Sohail Afridi said that if the authorities really wanted to eradicate terrorism, they would sit down with them, consult them and formulate a common policy.
“Sustainable policy can be achieved only if decisions are taken openly by involving the KP government, stakeholders, public and local elders,” Afridi, who belongs to PTI, said at the graduation ceremony of Shaheed Benazir Bhutto Women’s University on Wednesday.
“Such a policy will play a vital role in establishing peace. Otherwise, decisions taken behind closed doors will leave people wandering helplessly,” he added.
The KP chief minister was apparently responding to the press conference of the army’s top spokesperson, who on Tuesday said the political environment in KP was conducive to terrorism.
The CM said people have already witnessed the damage caused by past military operations and these painful stories are still fresh in their minds.
He said preparations for another military operation were again underway.
The CM said that more than 22 military operations and over 14,000 intelligence operations have already been carried out in the CP, but terrorism has not been eliminated. “Even the government itself admits that terrorists still exist,” he said.
He said that when they point out that terrorists are entering the region, reaching mountains, markets and even homes, they are accused of spreading propaganda.
He added that all speeches and statements of PTI chief Murad Saeed on this issue are being recorded. “Even now, if another military operation is launched, the nation must be taken into confidence, which has not been done,” he said.
Recalling past operations, he said schools, colleges, hospitals, houses, mosques and hujras were destroyed and entire communities were uprooted.
“We left our homes with just two days’ notice and made sacrifices for Pakistan because at that time it seemed like the country needed our sacrifice, and we did,” he said.
He added that before the military operations, there was not a single beggar, male or female, among the Afridi tribes. However, after the operations, due to drone strikes, aircraft bombings and suicide bombings, entire families, including male heads of households, were martyred, leaving only women behind. “When we see our sisters begging on the streets today, it hurts us deeply,” he said.
He said they had already seen the consequences of military operations and had repeatedly made sacrifices for Pakistan. “Even now, if necessary, we will not hesitate to make sacrifices again,” he said, adding that there was a difference in intentions.
The CM lamented that instead of eliminating terrorism, talks were underway to eliminate the PTI and its founding president Imran Khan.
He clarified that for the elimination of terrorism and for the good of the country, they are once again ready to make sacrifices and even leave their homes if necessary.
The chief minister said there is a certain mindset – which he refers to several times – that does not want KP to progress or its children to receive education.
“They don’t like to see a pen in the hands of our children because we have always been taught ‘B for bandook (gun). But, God willing, we will learn ‘Q for qalam (pen), not ‘B for bandook’.”
Addressing the female students, he said the mindset that dreams of sending their mothers and sisters to caves would be defeated. “God willing, your brother will educate you, provide you with employment and stand by you,” he said.
He assured that educated and qualified women would be fully supported and assisted in every possible way. “Have faith and do not be afraid,” he said.
