PESHAWAR, July 17: NWFP Chief Secretary Sahibzada Riaz Noor said on Tuesday that the army would not intervene to restore law and order until the provincial government took any decision to this effect and the troops would remain at its disposal.
He was presiding over a meeting which was attended by district nazims, provincial police chief, heads of the civil armed forces, DCOs, DPOs, and other high-ranking officers.
The meeting dispelled impression regarding apprehensions about a possible military operation in the Swat district.
The chief secretary informed the meeting that the President and the Prime Minister had categorically announced that there was no need of any such operation when the problems with the people like Maulana Fazlullah could be resolved through talks and traditional ‘Jirga’.
Mr. Riaz Noor said that the government wanted to employ all means including the traditional ‘Jirga’ to solve issues with troublemakers and control the growing incidents of law and order in different parts of the province.
He said that the government had decided to form ‘peace committees’ comprising ulema, elected representatives, opinion leaders and the men of integrity. These committees, to be formed on police station, tehsil and district levels, would mobilise the people against the miscreants, he added.
The chief secretary said that President Gen Pervez Musharraf had approved recruitment of 7,500 additional Frontier Constabulary personnel and withdrawal of 46 platoons of the FC.
He said that recruitment and training of jawans would be completed up to December 30. Till the time the fresh recruits complete their training, the military troops would work as a back-up, the chief secretary said.
