THE announcement itself was long delayed and now it appears the implementation is being put off too. On Saturday, a multi-party conference organised by parliamentarians from Fata issued a declaration urging the government to convert the cabinet-approved Fata reforms package into law. The MPC issued an ultimatum of sorts too, announcing a march in Islamabad if parliament did not approve the Fata reforms by May 20. As with the consultation and recommendations, the government appears to have lost either the interest in or the will to introduce reforms in Fata. Privately, officials deny that the government is delaying Fata reforms, but neither have they offered credible timelines in which the necessary legislation will be made. While the details are complex and the scope sweeping, there is a straightforward reality at the heart of the approved Fata reforms package: without parliamentary approval, reforms in Fata are effectively stalled. The administrative and structural changes, even those that are to be introduced later, can only be initiated with parliamentary and presidential approval. Inside parliament, there may yet be further tweaks to the reforms package, making it all the more puzzling that the government would delay a central piece of legislation that would have the most far-reaching effect on the federation since the 18th Amendment.

The culprit does appear to be politics once again. It has long been known that the JUI-F is not keen on Fata reforms and that Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif is perhaps not keen on upsetting the JUI-F. Moreover, Mr Sharif and his PML-N government have had a series of political crises to contend with in recent weeks: from the Panama Papers judgement to load-shedding to convulsions on the civil-military front. Meanwhile, Mr Sharif has been under attack for his determination to forge a path to dialogue with India, while the Pak-Afghan relationship has seen a number of highly concerning developments recently. The path since March 2, when the federal cabinet approved the Fata reforms package, has been littered with both familiar and surprising political and security-related events — but that is in the nature of government, not least in a country with myriad problems and multiple interests to defend. Surely, a third-term prime minister with a highly experienced cabinet ought to be able to deal with both short- and long-term issues simultaneously. Fata reforms are fundamental to national stability and must be put into effect.

Published in Dawn, May 9th, 2017