Even though it’s too soon to be excited, this development has been a welcome surprise. Despite all of their disagreements, Pakistan’s prime minister and KP’s chief minister were able to have “good talks” on Wednesday about their future partnership.
Following his discussion on public and provincial concerns, law and order, and other topics with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, KP Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur told reporters, “It was very positive.”
Mr. Gandapur continued, “He [the PM] gave full support and reassurances,” stressing the necessity of cooperative problem-solving between the federal and local administrations. The planning minister, Ahsan Iqbal, who spoke on behalf of Mr. Sharif at the press conference, seemed content as well, pointing out that the prime minister had pledged that the province’s debts would be investigated and that other matters would be handled by a combined committee made up of officials from the federal and KP administrations.
He said, “The main takeaway from today’s meeting is that, despite our individual political views, the state is united.”
Even the recently appointed minister of information, who began his day by charging the PTI with plotting to undermine the GSP-Plus trade agreement with the EU, eventually acknowledged that the meeting was a positive step forward. In an evening interview on a private television channel, he said Pakistan might make progress towards solving its economic issues if these kinds of exchanges persisted.
It is not necessary to mix up the two issues, even though PTI leader Hammad Azhar felt obliged to later clarify that the meeting shouldn’t be interpreted as a concession by his party on the claimed theft of its mandate and the detention of its leaders and workers.
Therefore, it makes sense for the PTI government in KP and the PML-N government in Islamabad to maintain a steady working relationship. The federation cannot cease functioning while election disputes and the destiny of incarcerated individuals are negotiated. It’s a civilised approach to handling political disputes. Additionally, it offers a chance for mutual confidence-building.
Since he presently has the upper hand, Mr. Sharif would want to think about other ways to defuse the situation, such advocating for the early release of political prisoners.
Half of the crises will be resolved if politicians can come to an agreement to settle their differences between themselves.