PESHAWAR – Governor Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Faisal Karim Kundi has said that an incompetent government has been imposed on the province and the meeting recently convened at the Governor House was aimed solely at getting awareness about the overall situation.
In a special interview with an international media network, Governor Kundi said that under the Constitution, the Governor of any province is empowered to convene a meeting on provincial affairs and law and order.
He clarified that he did not ask the Inspector General of Police for any transfers or postings, nor did he ask the Chief Secretary for any funds, and that he only inquired about the situation in the province.
The statement comes after the provincial government termed the Governor’s meeting with senior officers as unconstitutional and announced that it would seek the opinion of the Advocate General to determine its constitutional status.
Responding to the criticism, Faisal Karim Kundi said he is fully aware of his constitutional role and that the meeting was held to get a briefing on the challenges being faced by the province and what kind of support the federal government could provide.
He added that if any directives had been issued in the meeting, they would have surfaced through the media. He said the meeting discussed important provincial matters, including the issue of Afghan refugees, alleging that the provincial government was not showing seriousness on such issues and instead wanted Afghan nationals not to leave the country.
On a question regarding the possible imposition of Governor’s Rule or Emergency in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the Governor said that if the President, Prime Minister and relevant institutions believe that there is a need to impose Emergency or Governor’s Rule to save the province, they can do so in accordance with Articles 232 and 234 of the Constitution.
He questioned why the provision had been kept in the Constitution if it was not to be used, recalling that such measures had been taken in the past in Balochistan, Punjab, and also in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa during the tenures of Hayat Sherpao and Ghani Khan.
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