PESHAWAR, Jan 21: Leader of the National Awami Party Pakistan (NAPP), Engineer Irfan has demanded of the government to raise the status of the FATA to a province.

Commenting on the proposal of merging Frontier Regions (FRs) with settled areas, he said in a statement here on Monday that the FRs and FATA has become a safe heaven for criminals and these areas should be regulated by merging them with the settled areas.

He expressed concern over the law and order situation in the provincial capital and held the presence of FR Kohat and FR Peshawar responsible for this.

Engineer Irfan said the existing FCR system in the tribal belt was contradictory to the modern age and this should be abolished so that it could give a chance to the tribesmen to include them in to the mainstream of development.

He also urged the tribesmen of the FRs to support the decision of the government in the supreme interest of the country.—PPI