CHARSADDA: Qaumi Watan Party chairman Aftab Ahmed Khan Sherpao on Saturday described the dropping of Fata-KP merger issue from the agenda of federal cabinet meeting as a conspiracy against Pakhtuns and said that whoever had sabotaged the attempts for merger of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa were no less than the enemies of Pakhtuns.

Mr Sherpao said this while speaking at the 42nd death anniversary of late Hayat Mohammad Khan Sherpao, which was held in Sherpao village of Charsadda. Party workers from different parts of the province, Fata and QWP delegations from different provinces gathered to pay tribute to Hayat Sherpao, who was assassinated in Feb 1975.

QWP general secretary Anisa Zeb Tahirkheli, provincial chairman Sikandar Sherpao, lawmakers and leaders were also present at the event where several resolutions for rights of Pakhtuns were adopted.

Aftab Sherpao said that Pakhtun nation had rendered unmatched sacrifices for country, but they were kept deprived of any prospects of a developed future. He said that QWP would oppose all attempts intended to divide the Pakhtun nation, adding that all political parties, civil society organisations, lawyers and students should come out to support his stand on the merger issue to get their rights.

QWP chief announces to mobilise Pakhtuns for merger, due share in CPEC

The QWP chairman said that after the merger of Fata and KP it would become the second largest province of the country, which was not acceptable to the enemies of Pakhtuns. He stated that all stakeholders were in fav our of the merger, but it was being delayed to maintain the hegemony of Punjab.

He said that the country was being governed by a single nationality which had weakened its unity. He said that natural resources of the provinces were also being exploited and Punjab was being developed at the cost of smaller provinces.

Mr Sherpao said that despite approval of the 18th amendment the provinces were still not autonomous and were not being given control of their natural resources.

He said KP was the largest producer of natural gas and oil, but it was facing acute shortage of power and gas both for commercial and domestic purposes.

In addition, the QWP chief also called for holding an unbiased census in KP to achieve the required objectives. He claimed that efforts were underway to sabotage credibility of census in which the counting of data from KP would be held in Islamabad whereas the counting of data from Sindh would be held in Karachi and that of Punjab in Lahore. He said that this was unacceptable to Pakhtuns.

“We will never accept rigging in the census to usurp the rights of Pakhtun and will launch protest if attempts are made to sabotage credibility of census,” he warned.

About the CPEC, Mr Sherpao said that enemies of the KP people were also attempting to ignore Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in the development projects associated with the multibillion dollars mega project. He said that upgradation of transmission lines in KP was urgently needed to end loadshedding, but the federal government was not doing it. “KP is being deprived of any investment opportunities whereas all efforts are being made to end loadshedding in Punjab,” he claimed.

The QWP chief demanded of the govenemnt to make construction of Munda Dam and Chashma bank canal part of the CPEC project.

Published in Dawn, February 12th, 2017