LANDI KOTAL: The displaced Kukikhel families of Tirah have said that the recent visit of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa governor to the valley failed to address the genuine problems of the militancy-affected people of the region.

Talking to mediapersons at Jamrud Press Club on Thursday, representatives of displaced families of Kukikhel tribe, including Abdur Rehman, Zahirullah and Jamshed Khan, said that millions of rupees were spent on ‘useless’ activities in Tirah valley in the name of sports gala while thousands of the displaced families had been awaiting registration since 2012.

They argued that a number of Kukikhel, Sipah and Akkakhel localities of the valley were yet to be de-notified by the security forces while the KP governor was making ‘luxury trips’ to the region.

“Thousands of the returned families are awaiting compensation for their damaged houses while the governor announced nominal cash prizes for local sportsmen in the name of promoting so-called healthy activities whereas the entire Tirah valley is without a well-equipped hospital,” they stated.

The Kukikhel representatives expressed their astonishment at the inauguration of some development projects in Tirah during the recent visit of the governor and claimed that the same projects were already inaugurated by him during his previous visit in May.

“We need schools, hospitals and drinking water schemes instead of wasting money on festivals,” they insisted. They demanded of the Fata Disaster Management Authority and the Khyber Agency political administration to immediately initiate the process of their registration.

Published in Dawn, October 21st, 2016