PESHAWAR: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi has offered talks to the federal government, saying political issues should be resolved through mutual understanding.
His remarks came a day after the PTI announced that its planned long march towards Islamabad, originally scheduled for September 27, had been postponed until October 4.
The PTI has been preparing for a major protest in the federal capital, with the party demanding the release of its jailed founder, Imran Khan, and what it describes as the restoration of constitutional supremacy.
Speaking to senior journalists in Peshawar on Saturday, Afridi said the federal government should use the available time to resolve the issue through negotiations.
“If the federal government wants to resolve the issue within seven days, it should do so through mutual understanding,” the chief minister said.
He questioned why negotiations should be delayed until after the protest.
“If negotiations have to be held after the long march, why not do them before?” Afridi asked.
“We want the issue to be resolved,” he added.
PTI gives government more time
Afridi said the party’s political committee had decided to give the federal government some additional time, describing the delay as part of its strategy.
The chief minister also said the PTI would welcome Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman if he joined the planned protest.
“If Maulana Fazlur Rehman comes to us, we will welcome him,” Afridi said.
Asked about his position as chief minister, Afridi said he would accept any decision concerning his office and that Imran Khan would decide his replacement if he were disqualified.
“If I am disqualified, the PTI founder will decide my replacement,” he said.
PTI calls postponement a political strategy
Earlier on Saturday, PTI Khyber Pakhtunkhwa information secretary Shaukat Yousafzai described the decision to postpone the Islamabad march as a “political strategy.”
Speaking to journalists in Peshawar, Yousafzai said the federal government had deployed thousands of police personnel and placed containers in the area, prompting the party to adjust its plans.
“We have changed our political strategy. We support a peaceful struggle,” he said.
Punjab seeks Rangers deployment in four districts ahead of PTI Islamabad march
Yousafzai said the federal government would eventually have to engage with the PTI, urging it to move beyond what he described as “ego, stubbornness and the intoxication of political power.”
He alleged that the government was discussing negotiations through television channels rather than pursuing them directly.
“The government negotiates, but it does so on television channels,” Yousafzai said, adding that the PTI was prepared for talks if the federal government pursued negotiations in practical terms.
PTI reiterates demands
The PTI leader reiterated that the party’s primary demand was for Imran Khan to receive medical treatment in accordance with court orders.
Yousafzai also criticised what he described as federal interference in provincial affairs, arguing that the 18th Amendment limited the federal government’s role in matters concerning the provinces.
He alleged that provincial ministers had been arrested and accused the federal government of creating what he called a “law of the jungle.”
Yousafzai also criticised Federal Minister Attaullah Tarar’s remarks about Afridi and referred to an earlier statement by Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz concerning the provinces.
The PTI’s decision to postpone the Islamabad march has opened a window for possible negotiations, with Afridi publicly urging the federal government to use the opportunity for talks before the October 4 protest.
