PESHAWAR  -  Qaumi Watan Party (QWP) Khy­ber Pakhtunkhwa Chairman, Sikandar Hayat Sherpao, stat­ed on Saturday that holding free, fair, and transparent elec­tions was the only way to steer the country out of the prevail­ing crises. Addressing a gather­ing at Tangi tehsil in Charsadda district, he called for provid­ing a level playing field to all political parties. Local lead­er of the Pakistan People’s Par­ty and former councilor, Liaqat Khan, along with general coun­cilor Naeem Khan and others, announced joining the QWP on this occasion. They expressed confidence in the QWP leader­ship and declared their commit­ment to strengthen the party at the grassroots level.

Welcoming the new mem­bers to the party, Sikandar Sherpao assured that the QWP would not let them down and would meet their expectations. He emphasized that the QWP was dedicated to working for the development of Khyber Pa­khtunkhwa and the well-being of its residents, irrespective of political affiliations. Criticiz­ing the governance of the Pa­kistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), he highlighted that despite rul­ing over Khyber Pakhtunkhwa for almost a decade, the PTI left the province in dire financial straits. He accused the PTI rul­ers of deceiving the Pakhtuns in the name of change and failing to fulfill their promises.

Regarding the slogan of change, he described it as a tac­tic to seize power and asserted that the PTI leaders were now exposed as they couldn’t deliv­er on their promises. “The peo­ple are now more discerning. They have realized that the slo­gan of change was merely a po­litical ploy to gain power,” he remarked. Sikandar Sherpao further pledged that his party would persist in striving to se­cure the constitutional rights of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and its people. He alleged that during its rule in both the center and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the PTI compromised on the rights of the province.

Sherpao pointed out that due to the incompetence of PTI rul­ers, people were grappling with soaring inflation. Despite the production of inexpensive hydel electricity and surplus natu­ral gas in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, its residents were compelled to pay inflated power and gas bills, which he labeled as unjust.