Bilawal says KP governor's rule could end if opposition engages with Centre on counterterrorism policy

PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari suggested on Sunday that the opposition could end the governor's rule and emergency in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) if they cooperate with the federal government on a counterterrorism policy. Making these remarks during a visit to the Karsaz Monument in Karachi on the 19th anniversary of the Karsaz bombing, Bilawal said the situation in the country had reached a point where terrorist attacks were occurring from Khyber to Khuzdar.

He regretted the Taliban inviting terrorists from Afghanistan to live in Pakistan's Swat, Malakand, and tribal areas after coming to power in Kabul in 2021, referring to Imran Khan's plans to resettle members of the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan.

Bilawal claimed that terrorists who were in jail were also freed, and that the country was now facing losses due to wrong decisions. He stated that terrorist incidents were ongoing across the entire country, with security forces, law enforcers, and the public being targeted. However, he criticized the KP chief minister Sohail Afridi for not facing the terrorists. Bilawal emphasized that if the opposition was willing to fight terrorism and agree on a plan, the emergency in KP could end.

The PPP chairman highlighted the economic crisis in Pakistan and the need to address it while also fighting terrorism. He proposed improvements to Pakistan's democratic and electoral system, inviting the opposition to participate in an electoral reforms committee in the National Assembly. Bilawal argued that compromise and politics go hand in hand, and cited PPP's past compromises leading to the end of Gen Pervez Musharraf's dictatorship and the passage of the 1973 Constitution and 18th Amendment.