Fata province to be formally demanded today

The Fata Parliamentarians (MPs) are likely to formally recommend to President Zardari that provincial status be given to the tribal areas. The Fata or tribal province is proposed to be established in a phased programme so as to avoid complications and after getting input of its people, Fata MPs told The News.

“The MPs and the tribal leaders are to float the demand of a province after forming an elected council and then have their own assembly, chief minister, governor on the pattern of Gilgit-Baltistan, once Northern Areas (NAs).”

The MPs and the tribesmen, they added, are against the ANP’s demand for including Fata in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa. The MPs said, “Our funds are already being misused by the KP government because we come under KP governor’s administration.”

President Zardari, tribal MPs and two leaders from each agency will discuss Fata issues on Friday at an Iftar-cum-dinner at the Presidency.

To a question, they said that the thorny points related to implementation of Political Parties Act (PPA), and amendments in FCRs and alterations in recently promulgated regulation are key areas where the government agreed with the MPs and all matters are to be finalized.

“The MPs have no objection over the PPA’s extension to tribal belt, and, in the similar way, the government has incorporated in the FCRs our demands before formal issuance,” they said. Asked about difference in implementation and non-implementation of the PPA, the MPs explained that earlier all the election contestants were bound to submit before the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) a declaration that they had no link with any political party. Now this restriction would stand lifted allowing the political parties to campaign and field their own candidates.

A high level meeting was also held between the governor Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and the MPs plus tribal elders here on Thursday at the KP House to chalk out a strategy before meeting the president in the evening.

“Yes, we demand a province for the Fata areas just on the pattern of Northern Areas so that the elected members are part and parcel of each and every decision taking these areas towards a province,” endorsed Hamidullah Jan Afridi, a prominent Fata MNA and a former federal ministers, when The News contacted.

He elaborated that his parliamentary group, led by Munir Orakzai, wants an elected council to be set up immediately with Fata MNAs and senators as its members to look after the development work etc. “And then the council’s proposals should be followed till formally the tribal area is declared as a province.”