Bilour vows to protect 18th Amendment

PESHAWAR: Awami National Party (ANP) senior leader Ghulam Ahmad Bilour on Sunday said that his party had made great efforts for the 18th Constitutional Amendment.

He was speaking at a ceremony organized in connection with death the anniversary of former provincial minister and Khudai Khidmatgar, Amirzada Khan. Late Amirzada Khan hailed from the Bakhshali village in Mardan district.

He served as a member of the national and provincial assembly and was widely respected for his services. The senior politician said that ANP leadership had faced fake cases for raising voice for true democracy, basic rights for individuals and provincial rights.

He said Bacha Khan, with the support of his Khudai Khidmatgars, had fought for the rights of Pakhtuns against the British.

The senior politician said that those who were serving the British interests became elite in the country after independence. Ghulam Ahmad Bilour said certain elements, in league with the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government, were hatching conspiracies against the 18th Amendment.

He said that the rollback of the amendment and depriving the small provinces of their rights would be resisted. The ANP stalwart said that meddling with the Constitution could endanger the integrity of the country. He said that PTI leaders from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa should clarify if they were with the province or the forces which wanted to push the province back into darkness. Ghulam Ahmad Bilour said the government’s internal, foreign and economic policies had failed and poor people were suffering due to price-hike, joblessness and lawlessness.

He believed the country had gone bankrupt and the government was making failed attempts to run Pakistan with the support of International Monetary Fund. The ANP leader said “selected” and “selectors” should mend their ways to save the country from a serious harm.