Daily Times

PESHAWAR: Awami National Party (ANP) central General Secretary Mian Iftikhar Hussain has said efforts against terrorism would weaken if the Customs Act was imposed in Malakand Division. Speaking to Daily Times on Monday the ANP leader said the government should avoid provoking the residents of the area as he feared non-state actors in the area might take advantage of the situation.

He said that Malakand Division has suffered a lot because of terrorism. “The government needs to rehabilitate the militancy-hit division instead of extending the tax net there,” Mian Iftikhar explained. He said that government and stockholders of the agency marked a categorical difference over the Custom Act implementation, adding the issue could be advantageous for the terrorists who are still present in the country and lurking in the tribal Agencies. Efforts to eradicate terrorism would not be successful unless ordinary people supported them in the cause.

Mian Iftikhar Husain accused the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) and Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) of being on the same side when it came to the implementation of Customs Act on the Malakand Agency issue. “The recommendation for the implementation of the Custom Act was prepared and presented to the federal government by the PTI and the party is lying to the media when they say that they will not accept the Act”.

However, it pertinent to mention here that the federal government has already sought recommendations from the Home Department of KP for the smooth and steady implementation of the Custom Act on the Malakand Agency. ANP provincial general secretary also criticised the PTI government who failed to honour the mandate of the public and also alleged that party was looking for ways to encircle the Malakand Agency in the tax net.

He confirmed that the ANP would host all-party conferences on the issue today (Tuesday) where all stockholders would be taken on board regarding the federal government’s decision on the Malakand Agency.

“ANP is leading the movement which will be formally launched after the meeting with each and every section of the Agency tomorrow,” he declared.

He said that this was the second time the ANP was hosting the meeting with all political parties from the Malakanad Agency and other sections of the society.

He did not rule out taking to the streets in protest, although he called it a last resort.

When contacted, Special Assistants to chief minister KP Mushtaq Ahmed Ghani said PTI was unaware of any all party conference to be hosted by the ANP. He said that the issue of Custom Act implementation on the Malakand Agency was equally important for PTI as for other political parties.