PESHAWAR: The Awami National Party (ANP) has distanced itself from the reports of the nomination of former Chief Minister Amir Haider Khan Hoti for the post of Governor of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa as speculation and distanced itself from the reports of Governor’s Rule in the province.

ANP President Senator Aimal Wali Khan said that the Awami National Party should be kept out of the issue of Governor’s Rule, the foundation of the ANP is based on the principles of non-violence and human dignity of the Khudai Khidmatgar Movement.

He said that our ideology is the flag bearer of peace, tolerance and interfaith harmony, the Pashtun nation has always adopted a dignified and principled stance against colonial oppression and the ANP has been a strong voice of democratic socialism and federalism since 1986.

The ANP President said that we move forward by combining Pashtun nationalism with peace, development and justice and the ANP is still a symbol of democracy, tolerance and progress in Pakistan today.

In response, ANP’s central spokesperson Ehsanullah Khan termed the nomination of former Chief Minister Amir Haider Hoti for the post of Governor of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa as speculation and said that presenting the name of Amir Haider Hoti is a mental exercise of the central stakeholders of the government.

He said that Amir Haider Hoti is an important candidate of ANP in the elections. There has been no contact with ANP regarding Governor’s rule in the province yet. However, ANP is not convinced to suspend elected institutions.

Ehsanullah Khan said that the problems of the province will not be solved with a 6-month Governor’s rule but with good governance. The provincial government should also focus on governance to solve the problems of the people.

He said that 3.2 million voters in the province voted for PTI, 7 million votes were cast against PTI, which is proof that the majority did not agree with the release of the founder.