PESHAWAR: A convention of traders from different parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa here on Wednesday demanded of the provincial government to end lawlessness and extortion to help save them meet both ends.

Held under the auspices of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the convention was attended by hundreds of traders from division and district headquarters only to be disappointed by the absence of Chief Minister Pervez Khattak, who did not turn up despite committing to attend the programme.The traders` leaders demanded of the government to build a fullfledged dry port in Peshawar in an effort to improve trader operations amid growing load on the existing facility, which was not sufficient to cater to the needs of businessmen dealing in regular trade with Afghanistan and the Afghan Transit Trade.

They also demanded improvementof industrial estates in Charsadda, Nowshera, Peshawar and Mardan and asked for better security across the province to end the flight of capital from the province.

They said a large number of businessmen from the province had shifted their families to other provinces and a whole new sector in Islamabad had been inhabited by Pakhtuns shifted from Peshawar and elsewhere in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Traders dealing in trade with Afghanistan took exception to the federal government`s recent changes to the trade, linking it with payments against purchases in dollars.

They said the decision to end the rupee-based trade with Afghanistan could deprive local businessmen loss of business.

The traders said Afghan importers were likely to start imports from other countries as the advantage they had by making purchases in rupees had been lost. The decision has resulted into increase in cost of doing business for Peshawar businessmen.

Highlighting the Peshawar-specific problems faced by local traders, the traders` leaders asked for ending the local levy (cess) introduced by the Peshawar Municipal Corporation on imports as well.They said though the cess on exports had been removed in fulfillment of their demand, the authorities concerned had not yet issued the required notification.

Those who spoke on the occasion included KPCCI president Zahidullah Shinwari, Anjuman-iTajiran, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa chairman Sharafat Ali Mubarak, Traders` Alliance president Haji Mohammad Afzal, and Industrialists Association of Peshawar president Malik Niaz.

Office-bearers of traders` associations and chambers of commerce and industry from various districts and divisional headquarters of the province held a meeting at the KPCCI offices and prepared a charter of demands for presenting it to the chief minister.

However, after the chief minister did not turn up at the function, the traders` leaders took exception to Pervez Khattak staying away from the event, terming it negligence on his part.

Speaking on the occasion, the chief minister`s representatives, including provincial health minister Shaukat Yousafzai and local government and rural development minister Enayatullah Khan, assured traders that their demands would be met.