PESHAWAR: Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl, Fata chapter, has rejected the demand raised by various political parties for merger of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and claimed that the best solution to problems of the tribal people is holding a referendum so that the people themselves decide their fate.

Speaking at a press conference at the Peshawar Press Club on Friday, Haji Said Jan, a former candidate for NA-45 Khyber Agency, said that JUI-F did not oppose merger of Fata with KP, but wanted the federal government not to impose its decisions unilaterally on the people unless they were taken on board in this regard.

He said that the tribal people should be consulted on the issue of merger and any decision against their will would have very negative impact on the future of the area and its people.

Party’s Fata leaders say referendum to lead to resolution of problems

He said that it was unacceptable to bring changes in tribal region on the wishes of a few parliamentarians.

Flanked by the party’s tribal leaders, including Syed Kabir, Ashraf, Sifat Shah and others, Mr Jan said that the opinion of tribesmen should not be underestimated in this crucial decision.

He claimed that the people favouring the merger of Fata with KP had no relevance to the tribal regions.

“The people of Fata need basic amenities and reconstruction. They are not in a position to decide their political future right now,” said another JUI-F leader Said Kabir said.

He opposed the government’s decision about appointing a chief operating officer in Fata, saying that the governor should take active part in running the affairs of Fata to overcome the problems.

He said that Governor Iqbal Zafar Jhagra was a political person, but he was not taking interest in resolution of the issues.

“When people of other areas like Hazara, Bahawalpur and Seraiki can raise the demand for a separate province then Fata people should also be given the right to get a status of separate province,” he said.

Mr Kabir said that the idea to merge Fata with KP was the agenda of a nationalist party, which was not representing tribal people.

He said that JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman had always raised voice for the rights of tribal people at every forum.

Published in Dawn, September 16th, 2017