QUETTA, Jan 24: The Balochistan National Congress (BNC) on Thursday demanded that the four units of the federation should be given the status of autonomous states and the country should be declared United States of Pakistan.

The BNC Chairman Dr Abdul Hakim Lahri said at a press conference that the USP should be made a modern progressive, secular and voluntary federation in which the states should be given the right to self-determination and equal rights.

Dr Lahri said the parliamentary system as practised in the country had created problems for the smaller federating units and suggested that the election tenure for the UPS president should be three years and he should be elected from the states by rotation.

He said the election for National Assembly and Senate should be conducted under proportional representation system on the basis of joint electorate and every state should be considered a separate unit.

He said the powers in the concurrent list should be handed over to the states and the federal legislation lists should be reconstituted.

Dr Lahri suggested that the Council of Common Interests should be empowered to oversee the administration of the legislative list and the Senate should be given power to legislate on issues which concern the states.

The BNC chairman said that taxation powers should be given to the states and they should decide about the shares to be transferred to the federations.

He said that coast guards, levies, militia and all civilian armed forces should be under the control of the federating states.

He said the states should be free in promoting their culture, language and heritage.