LANDI KOTAL: A jirga of Kukikhel elders in Jamrud on Monday refused to assist the security forces in apprehending a militant commander.

The jirga was held at the hujra of Malik Attaullah Jan Kukikhel after Commandant Khyber Rifles Col Mansur Janjua asked the tribe to help the security forces in arresting Taliban commander Ababeel.

Addressing the jirga, Malik Attaullah said that his tribe was not in a position to assist the security forces or track down the wanted Taliban commander.

He said that the local administration and security forces had been demanding of the Kukikhel tribe for the last five years to raise a lashkar against Taliban but he always resisted the pressure.

“We will opt to leave our houses and migrate to other areas instead of raising a lashkar or assisting the security forces,” the tribal elder told the jirga. He added that his tribe would never become a tool in the hands of intelligence agencies.

Taliban had in the recent past expedited activities in Kukikhel-inhabited area by targeting health workers, security forces and vehicles taking supplies to Nato forces in Afghanistan via Torkham border.

Security officials and local administration had warned the tribe of a large scale operation against militants in the area if it failed to assist them in capturing the wanted men.

The warning came after the killing of a polio worker in Ghundi area on Dec 20. Another polio worker was also killed in the same area two weeks ago.

Meanwhile, Khyber Union, a Bara-based political organisation, has opposed the repeal of Article 247 of Constitution and demanded formation of an elected council to recommend any change in the existing status of Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata).

Responding to the demand put forward by Fata Siyasi Etihad regarding repeal of Article 247 and empowering the parliament to enact and amend laws for Fata, Khyber Union in its meeting on Monday cautioned that any such step would jeopardise the present status of Fata as tribal jirga would lose its credibility.

Fata Siyasi Etihad, a conglomerate of eight mainstream political parties, had on Sunday lamented that Fata parliamentarians in National Assembly and Senate were not empowered to enact any law for the tribal areas.

“We want that Article 247 should be amended in such a manner that the President will have to seek consent of an elected Fata Council alongside a representative jirga of tribal elders for bringing about any change in the existing system in Fata,” Hamidullah Jan Afridi, a former MNA from Bara, told the meeting.

He said that most of the laws enacted for the tribal areas were proposed by non-tribal members, who had little or no knowledge of tribal areas.

“We want the elected Fata Council and tribal elders to recommend changes in our laws to the President under the amended Article 247,” Mr Afridi said.

Bazaar Gul Afridi, chairman of KU, said that no political party was sincere in addressing the problems faced by tribal people.

The KU leader said that political leaders were interested in promoting their own party manifestoes rather than addressing issues of Fata.

Ikramullah Jan Kokikhel said that Fata should be awarded status of a separate province and it should be given full authority and control over its resources.

The meeting demanded of the federal government to hold local bodies’ elections in Fata and implement FCR reforms.

Meanwhile, the health workers in Khyber Agency have threatened to boycott polio vaccination drive if they are not provided with foolproof security by the political administration.

Paramedics Association president Abdul Haleem Afridi told journalists on Monday that killing of two polio vaccinators caused unrest among their colleagues.

He demanded compensation for the families of Mohammad Yousaf and Ghilaf Khan, who were killed in Jamrud during the last two weeks.