PESHAWAR: Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Muhammad Sohail Afridi has invited the people from across Pakistan to reach Swabi Interchange today (Sunday) October 11 to participate in the long march.
Addressing the participants of the long march at Shabqadar Chowk in District Charsadda, late Friday night, he said that convoys from Peshawar and Malakand divisions would reach Swabi Interchange on October 13, while a course of action for Hazara Division would also be announced on the same day.
Convoys from Kohat Division would also reach Swabi Interchange, while convoys from Bannu and Dera Ismail Khan Divisions would join the march along the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) route.
KP CM appealed to people from all walks of life to play their role in the struggle for genuine freedom and sovereignty. The Chief Minister said that Khyber Pakhtunkhwa had witnessed peace and prosperity during Imran Khan’s tenure from 2018 to 2022, when Pakistan’s economic indicators were moving in a positive direction. The country’s GDP growth had reached 6.1 per cent during that period, while industry, agriculture and exports were expanding. He said genuine leadership was defined by its commitment to improving the lives and prosperity of the people.
He said Pakistan’s development trajectory had been halted through a regime change operation orchestrated through decisions taken behind closed doors. External conspirators and internal traitors had jointly diverted Pakistan from the path of progress.
He said he wished to place before the public the performance of the previous four-year period and the consequences of the regime change operation. He said Pakistan’s poverty rate had reached 48 per cent, while the country ranked 109th among 120 countries on the Governance Index. GDP growth had declined to 2.2 per cent, while the inflation rate had reached 80 per cent.
He said those who described Afghanistan as inexperienced should note that its inflation rate stood at only 16 per cent. Following the regime change operation, Pakistan’s economic indicators had been moving in a negative direction. Pakistan had risen to the top of the Global Terrorism Index, and the country was now bearing the consequences of decisions taken behind closed doors.
KP CM said that between 2004 and 2026, 14,000 intelligence-based operations and 22 major military operations had been conducted in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, yet terrorism had not been eliminated. He said the first military operation in Pakistan had been conducted in Balochistan during the 1970s under the government of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto.
At the time, it had been claimed that peace would be restored within six months. However, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto had outlined the reasons for the operation’s failure in his book. Zulfikar Ali Bhutto had written in his book, the fundamental reason for the failure of the Balochistan operation was the takeover of the powers and privileges of the civil administration and civil bureaucracy. All resources had been placed under the military, while powers and privileges had also been concentrated in one place. He clarified that this assessment of the operation’s failure was not his personal position but that of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, the then Prime Minister of Pakistan.
KP CM said Zulfikar Ali Bhutto was the founder of the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP), yet the same party was now aspiring to impose Governor’s Rule in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
Addressing those who associated them with terrorists, he said that in 1994, PPP Interior Minister Naseerullah Babar had used the term “my boys” for terrorists.
He said Mujahid Hussain had no affiliation with either Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) or Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. In his book Punjabi Taliban, Mujahid Hussain had discussed terrorist training centres in Pakistan.
According to him, 229 terrorist camps had been established in Pakistan, of which 219 were located in Punjab. Millions of terrorists had reportedly received training at these camps. He said neither PTI nor a PTI government existed when these activities were taking place.
KP CM said that since 1947, people genuinely committed to the country had repeatedly been branded traitors. Bacha Khan had been labelled a traitor, as had Mohtarma Fatima Jinnah, the sister of Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah. Now, as the truth about those responsible was coming to light, patriotic citizens were being accused of terrorism. He said both sides knew who the real terrorists were.
He said the people of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, along with police and military personnel, were making daily sacrifices and embracing martyrdom. The people of Pakistan, including those serving in every institution, were sons of the nation. He said they opposed every policy that cost innocent lives and generated illicit wealth for personal interests. Whenever I spoke about formulating a policy to eliminate terrorism, his recommendations are not given due consideration.
KP CM said Pakistan ranked 130th among 143 countries in the World Justice Project’s Rule of Law Index. The regime change operation and political victimisation had destroyed the rule of law in Pakistan. There was no effective rule of law in the country, and constitutional and legal violations were taking place on a daily basis. The judiciary, he said, had been shackled. He said Zill-e-Shah, Dr Yasmin Rashid, Imran Khan’s wife and his sisters have been targeted and illegally incarcerated. PTI workers, including underage children, were also being continuously targeted.
The incidents of 26 November, Muridke and other similar events had contributed to Pakistan’s present situation. He also cited the killing of innocent Kashmiris as an example of the injustices continuing in the country.
KP CM said that if separate laws applied to the rich and the poor, the country would inevitably face the situation it was experiencing today. The Constitution was a social contract, and its continued violation would have devastating consequences. He said Pakistan ranked 136th among 186 countries on the Global Corruption Index. He described this as another consequence of the regime change operation. Following the operation, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) had, identified corruption amounting to Rs 5,300 billion by the federal government.
KP CM said the federal government owed Khyber Pakhtunkhwa more than Rs 5,000 billion and was withholding the province’s rightful share under the National Finance Commission (NFC) Award. The federal government, he added, was merely pretending to sympathise with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
He said that compensation of only Rs 400,000 had been announced for houses destroyed during military operations, but even the announced compensation had not been paid to the affected families.
KP CM questioned how people carrying purses worth millions of rupees could understand the hardships faced by displaced families. The rulers, he said, had no understanding of how affected families lived in tents with their children. They remained insensitive to the destruction caused by drone strikes and military operations. If the rulers spent even one day living in tents alongside their families, they would understand the difficulties faced by the people.
He said Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Police possessed some of the best weapons and modern weaponry in Pakistan. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa had the lowest level of corruption, he said, and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa had received an award for digital governance. He said The Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system had secured first position for its performance, while the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly had also achieved first position.
KP CM said Imran Khan had served as Prime Minister of Pakistan with the same national resources, yet the country had continued to progress. Under Imran Khan’s leadership, Pakistan had been advancing because his vision was based on justice. He said Pakistan’s development had been halted by bringing looters, traitors and oppressors into power. He said the country’s relations with neighbouring states were strained because of a failed foreign policy. Trade with neighbouring countries could generate annual business worth USD100 billion and revenue amounting to Rs 27,000 billion. To promote regional trade and economic development, Pakistan would have to refuse to bow before the powerful elite. The country could not progress without an independent foreign policy. He said only Imran Khan could steer Pakistan out of its current crisis.
KP CM said those who had imposed a corrupt and treacherous leadership on Pakistan should remember the facts. People currently in power had raised slogans against their own institutions on the floor of Parliament. He said they had never claimed that the military had “chewed even their bones”, whereas those now imposed in power had made such statements on the parliamentary floor.
He further said they had never given interviews to international media describing Pakistan as part of a dirty game, whereas those currently in power had made such statements. They had never attacked the Supreme Court, he said, while those now placed in power had attacked the Supreme Court.
The Chief Minister said a revolution did not require millions of people. He cited figures of 10,000 participants in the Chinese Revolution, 10,000 in the Iranian Revolution and 23,000 in the Russian Revolution. He appealed to people from all walks of life to play their part in the struggle for genuine freedom and national sovereignty.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2026