PESHAWAR:

Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi, responding to federal criticism over the disbursement of Rs4 billion to families displaced from Tirah Valley, on Tuesday turned the spotlight back on the Centre. He cited an International Monetary Fund (IMF) “charge-sheet” reportedly identifying Rs5,300 billion in corruption at the federal level.

“Why does nobody talk about this massive figure mentioned in the IMF’s documents?” the chief minister questioned while addressing a convocation of the University of Engineering and Technology (UET) in Peshawar.

“This smacks of double standards,” he added, labelling the federal allegations as a “political gimmick” intended to distract attention from their own financial mismanagement and governance failures.

Referring to the province’s outstanding dues, the chief minister said the federal government owed Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa billions of rupees in net-hydel profit which, he said, was the province’s constitutional right.

Positioning himself as a defender of K-P’s constitutional rights, the chief minister said had he been personal, he would not have met Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif in the first place. “My personal likes or dislikes won’t stand in the way of public rights.”

The chief minister made it clear that while he was willing to negotiate for K-P’s financial rights, his political loyalty with Imran Khan remained non-negotiable and described any federal strategy to squeeze the province into submission as “wishful thinking”.

Noting that prolonged insecurity had deprived young people of educational and professional opportunities, he assured the students of his government’s efforts at bridging the gap.

Linking development and prosperity to sustainable peace, he said lasting peace was essential for progress and that sincere efforts were under way to restore law and order.

He said without peace, development was impossible, and that Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa would not be allowed to become an experimental ground any longer.