The government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) has appointed a former district nazim of Peshawar, Muhammad Asim Khan, as special assistant to the chief minister, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Ali Amin Gandapur.
The development came through a notification issued by the KP government administration department on Wednesday, stating that on the advice of the chief minister, KP, Ali Amin Gandapur, the Peshawar city’s former district nazim, Muhammad Asim Khan, has been appointed as a special assistant to the chief minister, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa with immediate effect.
Muhammad Asim Khan had served as the district nazim of Peshawar in the previous term of the local government and was an active leader of the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf.
Read also: Peshawar crumbles under administrative neglect as governance worsens
Senior journalist and analyst Zahir Shah Shirazi has stated that Peshawar has become an uninhabitable city. He pointed out that neither the Commissioner of Peshawar nor the ministers consider this city their own, as they do not originate from Peshawar and often return to their hometowns during festivals. While people live, work, and pursue education here, there is a lack of connection and commitment to the city from those in power.
During an appearance on the Pakhtoon Digital Podcast, Shirazi highlighted the issue of illegal residents in Peshawar. Following the federal government’s announcement of action against illegal Afghan residents, the number of unlawful individuals in the city has reportedly increased by another one million. Many of these individuals are renting homes in affluent areas such as Hayatabad, yet local officials, particularly the Commissioner of Peshawar, remain silent on these matters.
Shirazi pointed out that billions of rupees have flowed into the accounts of property tycoons under the guise of various illegal projects in Peshawar, with the current administration’s approval. He noted that citizens are being exploited, and no one is holding these individuals accountable. In the city’s upscale neighbourhoods, many officials have properties registered under the names of their relatives, and even government market rentals are frequently awarded to these bureaucrats’ family members
