Awami National Party (ANP) Chairman Asfandyar Wali Khan announced on Saturday to dissolve all central, provincial and district organisations of the ANP and to transfer power to the election commissions to run the party’s affairs during the transitional period.
Addressing a press conference in Wali Bagh, Charsada, Asfandyar said the election commissions would also be responsible of completing the party’s memberships and the elections throughout the country by the end of March.
The ANP Central Election Commission (EC)/Organising Committee will be headed by Senator Mohammad Adeel who will be assisted by Senator Baaz Mohammad Khan, Bushra Gohar, Rana Mubarak, Haji Shafiq, Major (r) Masroor Baig, Dr Mohammad Akram Khan, Farooq Bangash, Sultan Mandokhel, Advocate Daud Khan and Abdul Malik Panizai. Former senator Bashir Khan Mattak will serve as the chairman of the ANP Central EC in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP).
Asfandyar said the central, provincial, district and union council (UC) level bodies of the party were dissolved according to the recommendations of the party’s fact-finding committee, constituted for the reasons and those responsible for the party’s failure in the May 11 general elections.
“The ANP organisations and the previous KP government have been held responsible for the party’s failure in the general elections,” he said, adding that the party’s high-ups had therefore decided to give an opportunity to workers to elect new office bearers of the party.
The ANP chairman said the provincial ECs would constitute district-level commissions by September 15, which would then constitute UC bodies by the end of September.
The membership drive would be completed by November, UC-level organisations by December and district-level oraganisations by January, he said.
On the completion of district-level organisations, provincial elections under the supervision of the central EC would be held in February, he said, adding that elections for the central cabinet would be held from March 1to March 15.
Asfandyar said he hoped to satisfy the party workers by dissolving the party’s organisations and holding fresh polls for the party offices.
He said that no single person was held responsible for the party’s failure in the May 11 elections but he and other party members had already confessed their shortfalls which had led to the party’s defeat.
Replying to a question, Asfandyar said the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) was mandated by people to govern the province and had the right to complete its tenure. He said the ANP would never become part of any move to destabilise the PTI coalition government in KP.
However, showing disappointment over the KP gpvernment’s performance, he said the “masses are the best judge”.
Asfandyar said the general election results were manipulated and the ANP candidates were not allowed to campaign, which lead to the party’s defeat but despite having reservations over the election results, the ANP had accepted them in the larger interests of the country and democracy, he said.
