ISLAMABAD: Talks between the government and opposition, which continued from Saturday afternoon, ended without agreement, prompting the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) to announce the launch of its long march from today.
According to sources, the two sides failed to reach an agreement on the draft presented during the negotiations. Both sides subsequently blamed each other for the failure of the talks. Members of the negotiating committees later left the Speaker’s Chamber.
Speaking to the media after the talks, Adviser to the Prime Minister and government negotiating committee member Rana Sanaullah said the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government was not ready to play its role in the fight against terrorism.
He urged the provincial government to fulfil its constitutional responsibilities regarding counterterrorism and said the government could not compromise on the issue.
Rana Sanaullah also warned that the long march would not be allowed to enter Islamabad and that any attempt to create disorder would be dealt with through the force of law.
Government negotiating committee member Sherry Rehman said the government had listened to the opposition’s concerns and that the draft agreement had been revised four times.
“We cannot compromise on terrorism,” she said, adding that the opposition had refused to agree on the long march and some other issues.
Another government committee member, Talal Chaudhry, said the talks had failed over matters related to the fight against terrorism. He alleged that the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government was unwilling to implement the National Action Plan.
“Terrorism is a war for Pakistan’s stability, and everyone must cooperate in it,” he said.
On the other hand, opposition leader Allama Nasir Abbas said a deadlock with the government persisted. He said the matters could not be finalised until a meeting was held with PTI founder Imran Khan, adding that substantial progress had been made on several issues during the negotiations.
PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar said the party had wanted the negotiations to succeed, but its long march decision remained intact.
“The long march will take place,” he said, while urging that no action should be taken under its cover that could create tensions among the people of the province.
Barrister Gohar maintained that holding a long march was the party’s right and appealed to the authorities not to stop it. He also said that nothing should be considered final in politics, stressing that political options always remained open.
He further warned that the response to the long march should not be emergency rule or Governor’s Rule.
Meanwhile, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Khan Afridi announced that the long march would begin today, saying the struggle for the supremacy of the Constitution and law would continue.
He said all PTI demands were in accordance with the Constitution and the law and maintained that citizens had a constitutional right to peaceful protest.