Govt accused of reneging on ex-FATA promises

Asad Qaiser accuses govt of ruining economy by closing Afghan borders

ISLAMABAD:

Leaders of a six-party alliance of opposition parties and elected lawmakers from erstwhile FATA have accused the government of dishonouring promises made to the people of the tribal districts.

While speaking at a joint news conference, Tehreek Tahaffuz-e-Ain-e-Pakistan leaders Asad Qaiser, Mahmood Khan Achakzai and Allama Nasir Abbas lamented that the situation in the tribal districts of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa continues to deteriorate with each passing day.

Qaiser lashed out at the federal government for not fulfilling the promises it had made to the people of the merged districts, adding that they were promised a share under the NFC Award, and that a significant amount was to be allocated for the accelerated development of merged districts.

He further stated that the federal government is bent on taking revenge from tribal people. “Instead of fulfilling its promises, the federal government is playing havoc with the economy of the merged districts by closing borders with Afghanistan and halting their trade,” he added.

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He lamented that no one is talking about sit-ins at Chaman and Ghulam Khan border crossings as the demands of protesters are not being taken seriously.

Putting forward demands before the centre, he demanded reopening of trade with Afghanistan at the earliest. "The demands of our people who are protesting should be met, and a parliamentary committee should be formed to address these issues.”

He urged the government to negotiate with all those who are leading the sit-ins.
“We want the supremacy of the Constitution in Pakistan. The parliament of Pakistan should be sovereign,” Achakzai remarked.

Commenting on the denial of due rights to the erstwhile tribal areas, he stated that merged districts should be given their due and promised rights, urging the federal government to allocate a portion of the budget to the merged districts.

Echoing the sentiments of Achakzai and Qaiser, Allama Nasir Abbas stated that the social fabric of the tribal areas was destroyed and handed over to terrorists.

“Promises were made to the people of FATA before the merger, but they were not fulfilled. We are being deliberately divided into pieces. We are being divided in the name of regionalism and ethnicity,” he added.