PESHAWAR -
The PTI, JI and QWP have agreed on a power sharing formula to form a coalition government in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The JUI-F of Fazlur Rehman, the second majority party in the province which was too eager to engineer its own coalition, will now have to sit on the opposition benches along with PML-N, ANP and PPP for next five years.
As per the agreement reached between the Pakistan Tehreek-I-Insaf (PTI), Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) and Qaumi Watan Party (QWP), the JI will get ministries of Finance, Education and Ushar-Zakaat, while QWP will have the slots of KPK assembly deputy speaker, one senior minister and a minister. Swabi-based AJIP will also be given two ministries.
Besides the rest of the ministries, the PTI would hold the key posts of chief minister and assembly speaker. Imran Khan finalised the name of PTI KPK Secretary General Pervez Khattak for the CM slot Wednesday night when Khattak and Asad Qaiser, party’s KPK president who was also aspiring for this coveted position, called on the party chief at his hospital in Lahore.
Even though Khattak had been previously been nominated, the party was split over the matter. Moreover, party sources told this scribe that one of the coalition partners had shown reservations on the name of Khattak. “Our support for the CM seat is with Asad Qaiser as he is an ideological activist who worked hard to strengthen the party,” said PTI Central Deputy Information Secretary Shah Farman.
But a group led by PTI heavyweight and winning candidate from PK-2 constituency, Shaukat Yousafzai, threw its support behind Khattak. On Wednesday evening, the matter went to the party chairman Imran Khan for a decision who decisively ruled in the favour of Khattak.
PTI emerged the single largest force in the provincial assembly on May 11 polls by security 35 seats. According to the Election Commission website, the PTI secured 35 provincial seats, JUI-F 13, PML-N 12, QWP and JI seven each, ANP 5, AJIP 3, PPP just two seats and APML one. As many as 14 MPAs have been elected in their independent capacity.
The JUI-F, which tried to cobble a coalition of its own but was conveyed a clear “no” from the JI, has now decided to sit on opposition benches. Making this announcement in a news conference in Peshawar, JUI-F senior Vice Ameer Maulana Attaur Rehman also said that former KPK chief minister Akram Khan Durrani will be their parliamentary leader in the assembly whereas Lutfur Rehman will be the deputy parliamentary leader.
Despite having ruled KPK for five-year and completed various mega projects, the ANP, which was much optimistic about winning big in polls, failed badly.
The ANP had secured 48 provincial and 12 national assembly seats in the 2008 elections. But this time it got only five provincial assembly and one national assembly seats.