Daily Times

ISLAMABAD: Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman has said that the merger of Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) into Khyber Pakhtunkhwa will be destructive that of 9/11.

Addressing a demonstration against the proposed KP-FATA merger here on Saturday, the JUI-F chief said, “No one can dare to merge FATA into KP because the tribal belt has its own culture, identity and a long episode of sacrifices for the country so the merger will harm all these efforts.”

The demonstration were arranged by JUI-F leadership in which people from various tribal agencies, frontier regions and JUI-F activists from different localities of Pakistan chanted slogans against the merger and in favour of the JUI-F chief.

Brigadier Said Nazeer, Ambassador Ayaz Wazir, Senator Malik Hilal-ur-Rehman , Malik Khan Marjan, former MNA Hameed Ullah Jan afridi also addressed the demonstration.

After 9/11, former military ruler General (r) Pervez Musharaf decided individually to corroborate with US in the war on terror without taking on board people of Pakistan and the entire nation was still bearing the brunt of this decision. “Once again the history is being repeated by merging FATA into KP without taking into confidence tribesmen.”

He said that tribesmen should be taken into confidence to find better solutions just what UK did before divorcing the European Union. If the government of Pakistan can give semi-provincial status to Gilgit-Baltistan then why not FATA, he questioned.

It might be mentioned that MNA Ayesha Gulalai was not allowed to take a seat on the state by charged JUI-F activists citing tribal customs. However, Fazlur Rehman welcomed Gulalai in protest but did not comment over the issue.

Malik Hilal-ur-Rehman, a member of the Upper House from FATA, told daily times that mega projects were being carried out in only five big district of KP and other districts were being neglected.

Last week, Maulana Fazlur Rehman met Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, COAS Qamar Javed Bajwa, Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) DG Asif Ghafoor to discuss the FATA reforms process. The meeting continued for over an hour and later Fazal told the media that consultations would continue on FATA reforms.

Malik Khan MarJan, a prominent tribal elder, told daily times that infrastructure in the tribal belt had been destroyed due to terrorism. “You are throwing a merger bomb on them, which will increase their vulnerabilities. The government should start rehabilitation process in the first phase and then carry out a referendum to decide the fate of FATA.”

After the National Action Plan was formed, the government set up a committee under supervision of Sartaj Aziz but Ambassador Ayaz Wazir but there was not a single candidate from FATA in the committee.

Published in Daily Times, December 31^st 2017.