KARACHI (MNN); Sindh Governor Kamran Tessori on Friday strongly criticised Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi, accusing him of encouraging vandalism and road blockades during his recent visit to Karachi, which he said resulted in financial losses amounting to billions of rupees.
The KP chief minister had visited Karachi and other parts of Sindh last week as part of PTI’s renewed anti-government “street movement.” During the visit, Afridi complained of alleged mistreatment by the Sindh government, claiming police attempted to stop his motorcade and PTI workers from holding a peaceful protest at Mazar-i-Quaid. The Sindh government rejected the claims, stating that Jinnah Ground was under federal control and therefore a no-objection certificate could not be issued.
Addressing the media in Karachi, Governor Tessori said PTI had tried to destabilise the country, but its agitation remained limited to social media and had no real impact on the ground.
Referring to the KP chief minister’s visit, Tessori said Afridi was welcome to come to Karachi again, but urged him to arrive with a positive agenda instead of protest politics. He advised the chief minister to engage traders and industrialists and encourage investment in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa rather than mobilising people for street agitation.
“If you talk about setting up industries, promoting inter-provincial trade, securing people’s future and providing health and education facilities, the public will welcome you,” he said, adding that inflammatory political rhetoric, vandalism and road closures only created hardship for citizens.
The governor stressed that halting activities in Karachi caused massive economic damage, as the city was Pakistan’s financial and economic hub. He appealed to political leaders to avoid actions that disrupt normal life.
Tessori said Pakistan was currently under global attention due to diplomatic progress and questioned why certain elements continued to create instability instead of contributing to national recovery. He warned that repeating incidents similar to May 9 would amount to serving a foreign agenda.
Calling for greater focus on education, he said ignorance was the root cause of terrorism. Defending the armed forces, Tessori said politicians might disappoint the nation, but the army would never do so. He criticised PTI leaders for targeting the military, noting that the world was praising Pakistan’s defence capabilities.
He also questioned PTI’s performance in Karachi, stating that despite receiving major political support from the city, the party failed to deliver any significant development projects. He said PTI relied on social media narratives that misled people and offered no real benefit.
Concluding his remarks, Tessori said the nation must decide whether it wants economic and educational progress or empty slogans that only lead to chaos.
