Recently, I got an opportunity to talk to a few residents of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa while at a private hospital in Islamabad. When I asked why they had come all the way to Islamabad for medical treatment, they told me they had no choice since there were hardly any good hospitals in KP, except for a few in Peshawar. These are often overcrowded and waiting times are too long.
One of the respondents remarked that their province had abundant resources, including minerals, fruits and hydropower, but the provincial government had not built hospitals, educational institutions or roads to facilitate ordinary citizens. The PTI leadership has only gained sympathy through empty slogans for the last many years. One can only wish that the newly installed chief minister will make every effort to offset the neglect of the previous leadership.
Dr Najeeb A Khan
Islamabad
