THE new setup in KP is taking shape rapidly and quietly. While everyone seems focused on the collective meltdown in the PTI, the province the party ruled until recently is busy setting up a new structure. The governor announced his new advisory council within days, while the emergency-stricken districts have been provided with their own administrative machinery. A special emergency has been declared in the former Fata regions as well as Bannu, Lakki Marwat, Tank, and Dera Ismail Khan.

According to the information available in news reports, these regions will now be managed by a new Area Development Secretariat (ADS), which is to be headed by a bureaucrat, Yahya Akhundzada, an additional chief secretary (ACS). It is being reported that he has been given extensive powers akin to those of a cabinet or a provincial government. Along with this, a new council has been formed, consisting of four people from each district to assist him. An additional inspector general (AIG) of police is also part of this council. Most of these members have been selected, with a few refusals; not bad for a week’s worth of work.

At the federal level, a committee headed by Ishaq Dar has been formed to supervise the province. Besides Dar, the committee includes several PML-N stalwarts, mostly from Punjab, such as Rana Sanaullah, Azam Nazeer Tarar, and Attaullah Tarar. However, other members include Amir Muqam from KP and........

© Dawn