Hypocrisy hallmark of PTI’s politics: Atta Tarar

ISLAMABAD, Oct 04 (APP):Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Attaullah Tarar said on Sunday that the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) is not ready to abandon the hypocrisy and double standards that are the hallmark of its politics.

“PTI comes to talks with duplicity and double standards, and is not ready to give up its policies,” the minister said while talking to the media. Tarar said he has been pointing to their duplicity for the last couple of weeks and, ironically, they are proud of their shifting stances.

Providing safety and security to the people of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is the primary responsibility of the provincial government, he said, adding, “If it cannot protect the lives and property of its citizens, it is a complete failure of provincial government.”

He also highlighted contradictory statements from within PTI regarding the counter terrorism policy, citing the statement of Shafi Jan, who said the party will change its policy on terrorism completely, while Salman Akram Raja says otherwise.

The minister said PTI’s policy amounts to nothing but promoting terrorism and spreading it across the province.

He said the PTI must now decide whether it stands with Pakistan or with Afghanistan.

“You take benefits from Pakistan but speak for Afghanistan. This double standard will not work,” he said, adding the party has neither owned counter-terrorism efforts nor shown seriousness about them.

The minister said this double standard is why the innocent citizens and children are losing their lives in Hangu, Dera Ismail Khan and Kohat. While the Law Enforcement Agencies and rescue workers are sacrificing their lives, Chief Minister Sohail Afridi is only focused on the release of a convicted prisoner, he added.

He asked who has stopped the provincial government from taking action against terrorism when the federal government has repeatedly asked it to do so. He also asked who has stopped it from holding provincial apex committee meetings when federal apex committee meetings are taking place regularly.

All other provincial governments hold such meetings, he said, but PTI’s does not. “This is why they are called the B team of TTP and C team of TTA, because their ideology and actions are aligned with the terrorists,” he noted.

He asked who stops them from attending the funerals of martyrs, expressing sympathy with their families, or standing in solidarity with the security forces and the personnel deployed at the borders. He also asked who stops them from fortifying police checkposts, establishing the CTD, setting up forensic labs, installing Safe City cameras, and equipping and building the capacity of the police.

Tarar added that the provincial government has received over Rs 700 billion for counter-terrorism so far, and this year alone, an amount of Rs 45 billion has been allocated for counter-terrorism and police capacity building.

Only Rs1.5 billion has been released so far, while the rest is being spent on salaries, petrol and other government expenses, he said, asking whether terrorism can be countered this way.

He said the party’s mindset is pro-terrorist, and it is not their concern that thousands of personnel of the security forces, armed forces and police have been martyred. He said PTI has never condemned the drone attack on Kohat or the firing from Afghanistan in Kurram, and has never said that it would take any action.

Recalling the desecration of the statue of Captain Karnal Sher Khan Shaheed and the burning of the Chaghi mountain model, he said such a party can neither honour martyrs nor take effective action against terrorism. He asked whether those with such a mindset can stop terrorism while in government, and said the answer is no.

The minister said Pakistan’s armed forces respond strongly to any drone attack or firing from Afghanistan, but the provincial government has never stood shoulder to shoulder with the army and the country. It should have condemned the drone attack on Kohat and stood with the people, he said, adding that it does not even have the strength to give its people courage.

He said that when he visited Kohat, injured citizens expressed resolve not to spare the terrorists. “Our people are more courageous than the provincial government,” he said.

Tarar said the National Action Plan has not been implemented in the province, apex committee meetings have not been held, the police have not been strengthened, the CTD has not been established, forensic labs have not been built, Safe City cameras have not been installed, and TTP and TTA have not been condemned.

Tarar said the provincial government’s double standards and hypocrisy have been exposed before the public, calling it a total collapse of governance in the province. He said provincial ministers are now talking about changing the policy on terrorism so that terrorists get more space and their financial interests advance.

He said effective action is being avoided to promote illegal mining, illegal trade and smuggling, which is also why apex committee meetings are not held. “Safety and security are the government’s first responsibility. Everything else is secondary,” he said.

If the provincial government cannot improve security, he asked, how will it resolve other issues in the province?

He said the federal government takes law and order seriously and will make full arrangements if PTI comes to Islamabad.

The minister said the lives and property of citizens are the top priority, and that the interests of the people of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa mean nothing to the provincial government, which puts personal and political interests first.