June 24, 2008	Tuesday	Jamadi-us-Sani 19, 1429

ISLAMABAD, June 23: The government will not enter into any agreement with militants in tribal areas, according to Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani.

He said this during a meeting with a delegation of the Awami National Party (ANP), the ruling party in the NWFP which has recently inked a peace deal with militants.

The prime minister said the government would hold dialogue with only those people who had surrendered their arms and joined mainstream political activities. “Extremist and terrorist elements have brought bad name to Islam and tarnished the image of the country,” the prime minister said.

The ANP delegation comprised Federal Minister for Local Government Haji Ghulam Ahmad Bilour and lawmakers Mateen Khan, Muzaffarul Mulk, Arbab Zahir, Pervaiz Khan, Pir Dilawar, Jamila Gilani, Bushra Gohar and Khursheed Begum.

He said that PPP and ANP were development-oriented and progressive parties and were jointly working for increasing employment opportunities, improving law and order and for the empowerment of women in the province.

Mr Gilani said the federal government was collaborating with the NWFP government on the provision of basic amenities to the people and development of infrastructure in the province.

The government, he said, was giving top priority to improving the law and order situation and stabilising the economic situation.

The prime minister said the government knew about the people’s problems and steps were being taken to solve them on a priority basis.

He urged parliamentarians to spend more time in their constituencies to become better acquainted with people’s problems.

The delegation thanked the prime minister for providing development funds amounting to Rs10 million to them, immediately after assuming office.