K-P govt urged to expedite development of tribal districts

Sherpao wants govt to help displaced Pakistanis in Afghanistan to return home

PESHAWAR: Nearly a year since legislation was passed by the assemblies in the centre and in the province to merge former tribal areas with Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, progress has been moving at a snail’s pace with little development and no visible change from being merged with the rest of the country.

This was stated by former federal interior and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa chief minister and Qaumi Watan Party (QWP) Chairman Aftab Ahmad Sherpao on Sunday while addressing the inaugural Tribal Conference at the Nishtar Hall in Peshawar.

Sherpao stated that despite the allocation of Rs100 billion for the development of the erstwhile federally administered tribal areas (Fata), no development has been witnessed on the ground in the tribal areas over the past year.  With the merger promised as a panacea to the ills and backwardness of the tribal areas, he complained that no tangible changes were visible in the seven tribal districts.

“All the internally displaced families should be repatriated to their respective tribal areas, while those who are stranded in Afghanistan, their return should be facilitated so that they can partake in the development of their areas as soon as possible,” he said.

“The volume of issues are so enormous in the country, that problems of the erstwhile Fata look small, but still we demand that the promises which have been made by various quarters should be fulfilled immediately,”  he stated.

He also urged the federal and provincial government to help create a conducive environment the forthcoming elections in the tribal belt.  Moreover, he said that the issue of deploying police and extending the courts should be resolved a priority basis.

Having once held the ministry himself, the QWP chief chastised the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) led federal government for appointing Shaheryar Afridi as a minister of states and frontier regions (SAFRON) even though the ministry ended last year with the promulgation of the 25th Amendment.

Sherpao further called for the immediate restoration of peace in the tribal areas where attacks on security services continue.

“Even after several hundred limited, several full-scale operations in the seven tribal districts, peace has not prevailed in the area,” Sherpao stated, as he went on to blame those who have actively promoted infighting. We will support all such political parties who plead the case of tribal residents.

Govt to fill 17,000 posts in
tribal areas

Adviser to Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) Chief Minister Ajmal Wazir stated that the government will soon fill over 17,000 positions in the erstwhile tribal areas, while interest-free loans will be provided to the youth and middle-aged residents of these areas for the economic revival of the region.

Wazir said this while interacting with Maliks and notables from the South Waziristan ahead of Prime Minister Imran Khan’s impending visit to the tribal area.  The advisor hoped that the PM’s visit to the area will help bring new fortunes to the tribal districts.

He warned that the government will be taking action against all ‘ghost’ employees, first sending notices and later terminating them unless they mended their ways.

Wazir, who hails from Waziristan, said that all medical facilities in the region will be provided with the requisite staff and medicines.

During the meeting, Wazir announced that the provincial government intended to extend the local bodies structures to the seven tribal districts with a development chest of Rs100 billion.

“The tribal belt will be on the development driving seat,” he stated. To spur growth, he said that the government intends to introduce interest-free microloans of up to Rs100,000 for the youth and middle-aged people of the seven tribal districts.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 22^nd, 2019.