Clear cut loyalties: Tribesmen show support for K-P governor

Claim they will oppose a replacement hailing from settled areas.

PESHAWAR:

Opposing the possible removal of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) Governor Shaukatullah Khan, tribal elders from North Waziristan agency urged the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N)-led government to refrain from taking such a step as it was not in favour of the tribal people.

Addressing journalists at the Peshawar Press Club on Thursday, Malik Shahzada Wazir, a member of a tribal jirga in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) and chief of the Burakhel tribe in North Waziristan, said the governor was the first to come from the tribal belt.



He said Shaukatullah was well-versed in tribal traditions and Fata’s current situation. “He has made efforts to resolve tribal issues on a priority basis,” claimed Shahzada. “However, the PML-N-led government has planned to remove him (the governor). This would be a wrong decision given the current state of affairs in the tribal belt.”

Shahzada said some issues could only be resolved by a governor hailing from Fata, as knowledge of tribal traditions and culture was required. “Governor Khan is highly qualified in this respect and we will strongly oppose a replacement hailing from settled areas,” warned the tribal chief.

Also speaking on the occasion, Malik Inzaman Dawar said the tribesmen had given numerous sacrifices to protect the region’s borders. “Despite this fact, an ancient system that violates tribesmen’s rights is still imposed on us,” he argued.

Highlighting other issues faced by tribesmen, Dawar said Fata was not given representation in the K-P Assembly, due to which many problems requiring political solutions remained unsolved.



Terming the US drone strikes attacks against the integrity, solidarity and sovereignty of Pakistan, Dawar demanded their immediate termination.

He added a large number of innocent civilians, including women, children and seniors, were killed in these ‘authorised’ predator strikes. “The situation is going from bad to worse with increasing US intervention in the region.”

Published in The Express Tribune, June 28^th, 2013.