PESHAWAR: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Governor Sardar Mahtab Ahmad Khan announced here on Monday that he had resigned from his office and handed over his resignation to Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. He has cited ‘personal reasons’ for his decision.

The change of guard at the Governor’s House is taking place at a time when tribal areas are yet to recover from turmoil. A five-member committee headed by Adviser to the Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz has started work on “political mainstreaming of Fata”. Sardar Mahtab is a member of the committee.

Over one million internally displaced persons are waiting for returning to their homes. Several political parties have started a campaign for merging Fata with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

At a press conference at the Governor’s House, Sardar Mahtab Khan claimed that stability and the writ of the state had been restored in Fata in close coordination with relevant sectors.

“Fata was like a marshy land when I assumed the charge and it is stable when I am leaving,” he said, adding that the area was now heading towards stability.

He said the process of reforms was under way in the area and internally displaced persons were going back to their homes after the successes achieved in the Zarb-i-Azb military operation in North Waziristan and Khyber-II in Khyber Agency.

With the resignation of Sardar Mahtab a guessing game has started about his successor.

Sardar Mahtab, who is close to the Sharif family, assumed the office of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa governor on April 14, 2014. Before that he was the leader of opposition in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa assembly.

Earlier, he served as chief minister of the province (from 1997 to 1999). When retired Gen Pervez Musharraf toppled the Nawaz Sharif government in October, 1999, Sardar Mahtab was jailed on charges of corruption, but was acquitted by the Supreme Court.

Speculations about his resignation had been making the round for a few months and a couple of days ago media reports suggested that he had informed the prime minister about his decision to quit the office.

“I think I have done my job with honesty and now someone else should come to carry on policies framed for Fata,” he said.

When a journalist asked him about the resignation, the outgoing governor said he was a politician and had knowingly made the decision. He dispelled a perception that he had been under pressure to relinquish the job.

“Before taking charge I had informed Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif that I did not want to stay as governor for a long time,” he said, adding that he had made some major decisions about policies relating to Fata.

When he was asked that there had been allegations of corruption in the Governor’s House and names of his personal friends were mentioned in this regard, he said he had taken responsibility for personal and collective decisions.

Sardar Mahtab took credit for the start of process of return of displaced people to North Waziristan, Khyber and other tribal agencies. He said the main bazaar of Bara in Khyber Agency which had re-opened after seven years would generate employment opportunities for local people.

He said the displaced people of North Waziristan were being paid monthly cash grants while a programme of providing vocational training to 20,000 youths of Fata had been started. A survey was carried out in the area and “good officers” were appointed in tribal agencies.

Sardar Mahtab said he had played a role in reducing tensions between provincial and federal governments and supported the KP government’s stance on the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor.

Published in Dawn, February 9th, 2016