By Staff Reporter
ISLAMABAD: Public satisfaction in the northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province has cratered, a new Gallup Pakistan survey reveals, as residents point to crumbling infrastructure, rampant unemployment, and a lack of accountability under the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, founded by former Prime Minister Imran Khan, which has ruled the region for over a decade.
The survey, conducted through face-to-face interviews with 3,000 residents across KP’s seven divisions in February and March 2025, with analysis finalized by June, offers a stark look at grassroots sentiment, signaling trouble for PTI in a region long regarded as its political heartland. PTI has governed KP since 2013 and retained control after the 2024 general elections, even as Khan remains behind bars facing multiple legal charges he alleges are politically driven.
“Despite 13 years of PTI governance, even its own voters are expressing disappointment,” the Gallup report noted. A striking 49 percent of PTI supporters said no recent development had occurred in their areas, a sentiment echoing broader frustration.
The survey paints a grim picture of economic stagnation and failing infrastructure. Fifty-nine percent of respondents reported rising unemployment, while 67 percent said the government had failed to generate jobs or business opportunities. Basic utilities are in short supply: 66 percent lack access to gas, and 49 percent face unreliable or no electricity. For the province’s youth, opportunities are even scarcer—77 percent have no parks, 81 percent lack libraries, and 70 percent are without community centers.
Though PTI’s early years brought some gains, 43 percent acknowledged new roads and 37 percent noted transportation improvements, progress has stalled since the 2024 elections, leaving many residents disillusioned.
Corruption looms large in the findings. Fifty-two percent of respondents believe development funds have been misappropriated, with only 32 percent saying they were used properly. Calls for accountability cut across party lines: 71 percent of those surveyed, including 62 percent of PTI voters, back formal investigations into alleged corruption in mega projects under PTI’s tenure. Forty-eight percent said corruption in government departments has worsened, and 40 percent believe it’s more rampant in KP than in neighboring Punjab.
One standout exception is PTI’s Sehat Card health insurance scheme, which enjoys widespread approval. Eighty-three percent of respondents, including 88 percent of PTI voters, said it has improved healthcare access, offering a rare point of pride for the party amid the criticism.
Yet leadership struggles to capitalize on such successes. Only 38 percent think current KP Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur outperforms his predecessors, while 47 percent still prefer Imran Khan, despite his imprisonment. In a stinging comparison, 50 percent of respondents, including 37 percent of PTI voters, rated Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif’s governance higher than Gandapur’s.
“The contrast between continued support for PTI’s welfare programs and disillusionment with current leadership signals a shift in political expectations,” the Gallup report observed.
Tensions between KP’s PTI-led government and the federal administration have fueled protests and public spats since at least the 2024 elections. But 85 percent of residents want stronger collaboration between the two, a clear call for unity over conflict. Sixty percent accused the KP government of “wasting time in protests and demonstrations rather than focusing on governance,” underscoring a hunger for results over rhetoric.
Faith in the formal justice system is eroding. Seventy percent of respondents said courts take too long to deliver justice, 50 percent labeled the judiciary corrupt, and 53 percent believe decisions are politically swayed. By contrast, the traditional Jirga system, a tribal dispute resolution mechanism, enjoys robust support: 84 percent of those aware of it back its use, and 70 percent say its rulings are fair.
The survey triggered sharp responses from both sides of the provincial divide. KP Information Adviser Barrister Saif rejected it as “politically scripted” and orchestrated by the federal government. “If Gallup were truly neutral,” he asked, “why does it not show the devastation in Punjab and the deprivation in southern Punjab?”
He pointed to unaddressed issues elsewhere, like “bandits in Sindh’s Kacha area or Karachi’s filth”, and called the survey a bid to curb PTI’s popularity. “Controlling the popularity of Imran Khan and the PTI through surveys is nothing more than a daydream.”
Punjab Information Minister Azma Bukhari seized on the findings, declaring that KP’s “12-year change” under PTI had been “fully exposed.”
She highlighted that 73 percent of respondents had effectively indicted Gandapur’s administration. “The situation in KP speaks for itself, it doesn’t need a survey,” Bukhari said. “Those who danced to Gallup’s findings yesterday now seem offended when the truth is about them.” Bukhari dubbed Gandapur the “chairman of the Loot-Mar Association,” alleging his cabinet’s complicity in corruption.
The Gallup survey lays bare a province grappling with unmet expectations. While PTI retains a loyal base, economic hardship, stagnant development, and demands for transparency have chipped away at its dominance. “The overwhelming demand for accountability and equitable governance signals a critical juncture for provincial leadership and institutions,” the report concluded.
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