PTI Hazara chapter wants steps for separate province

ABBOTTABAD: Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) Hazara chapter on Sunday asked the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government to take steps for setting up a sub-secretariat on the model of South Punjab to pave the way for creation of Hazara province.

“A setup led by an additional chief secretary and inspector general of police, besides secretaries of departments, should be formed as a prelude to the constitutional formalities for the creation of Hazara province,” PTI Hazara Division President Ali Asghar Khan told reporters.

He recalled that a motion had already been adopted in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Assembly on March 21, 2014 in support of a separate province for the people of Hazara. He urged the elected representatives in the KP Assembly to pass the resolution for creation of Hazara province with a two-thirds majority. "At the federal level, too, we have a government that has advocated smaller administrative units as part of its manifesto. As a result we have witnessed a number of steps being taken to build consensus on this important national issue, the latest being a government announcement to take steps to create the Southern Punjab Province," Ali Asghar said.

He argued that the KP Assembly must debate the issue before April 12, the anniversary of the firing incident that occurred in Abbottabad in 2010 and led to casualties as the people held protest against renaming of the North-West Frontier Province (NWFP) and demanded creation of Hazara province.

He said that PTI’s elected representatives were committed and resolute in performing their role for the creation of Hazara province. “We have been in consultation at the federal and provincial level and it is our strong belief that by working together and with the support of our workers and people we will achieve the desired results,” he added.