PESHAWAR: Through a unanimous resolution, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly on Monday asked the federal government to summon the US ambassador in Islamabad and tell him to stop drone attacks, which were against the sovereignty and integrity of Pakistan.
Senior Minister Bashir Ahmad Bilour moved the resolution for which Speaker Kiramatullah Khan relaxed the relevant rules with the consent of the House. The resolution also sought drone technology for Pakistan for effective action against the terrorists.
The mover observed that the ongoing drone attacks were contributing to unrest among the tribal people as innocent people are being killed in the attacks. The resolution said tribesmen were not terrorists but protectors of Pakistan’s frontiers. He said that irrespective of their rank the soldiers, police, paramilitary forces, tribal people, political workers, leaders and parliamentarians were rendering sacrifices in the ongoing war.
The senior minister said they had neither accepted dictation from anyone in the past nor would do so in future. He reiterated to continue the war against the enemies of peace and humanity as it was in the interest of the country and the coming generations. Leader of the Opposition Akram Khan Durrani supported the resolution but said the government had moved it after getting dictates from some quarters.
Minister for Information Mian Iftikhar Hussain said the Supreme Court of Pakistan verdict on the Higher Education Commission was in favour of the government and they were working on the legislation. He said the devolution of the HEC would not affect higher education, scholarships and students abroad. He said that it would, however, affect those earning millions in the existing set-up.
The minister said the government had started work on alternative legislation and had reserved funds for the purpose. He said some elements with vested interest were creating hurdles in the way of the HEC devolution. He said the government would form a commission on the pattern of the University Grants Commission for which a committee had also been constituted. He said there was no difference of opinion on the HEC devolution in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
Earlier, initiating the debate, Pakistan People’s Party parliamentary leader Abdul Akbar Khan said some elements were creating hurdles in the way of HEC devolution for their personal interests. He said all political forces had approved the amendments in the Parliament after one-and-a-half-year struggle.
Terming the universities as a “white elephant,” he said the provincial government did not have any power to make appointments in universities but it would be empowered to do so in future. Opposition leader Akram Durrani sought ruling from the speaker as to whether the issue, already in the court, could be debated. The speaker said it could be discussed after the verdict of the court.
Mufti Kifyatullah of the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl said that after devolution of the HEC, the higher education would be confined to the provinces and various personalities could not be appointed in other provinces. The News
