Tribesmen ask govt to pass Fata bill like Election Bill 2017

F.P Report

PESHAWAR: Elected representatives, political parties and students of FATA on Wednesday said the federal government has passed Election Bill 2017, in few days but the latter was using delaying tactics in implementation of reforms package in tribal areas.

A FATA youth grand Jirga was held under the auspices of All FATA Students Forum at Peshawar in which senator Hidayatullah, Ameer Jamaat-e-Islmai FATA Sardar Khan, Head of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Ulasi Tehreek Dr Syed Alam Mehsud, Engineer Toor Gul, Chairman FSF Farhad Ali, students and females were also in attendance.

After the Jirga, a unanimous declaration was issued by participants, urging central government to instantly announce merging FATA into KP, give representation to tribesmen in KP assembly in 2018 polls, extension of high court and Supreme Court jurisdiction to tribal belt and abrogate Frontier Crimes Regulation (FCR) a black law imposed since 1901 in FATA.

Earlier, speakers during the jirga, said that tribesmen have been deprived of their constitutional, legal, political, judicial and monetary rights since last 70 years and faced with multiple problems. They lashed out at federal government and saying it was lingering FATA reforms package and reluctant to merger tribal areas with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Regarding the recently passed Election Bill 2017, they stated the central government passed it within few days but not interested to mainstream tribes people. The discriminatory attitude by government with people of FATA is strongly condemned and that a protest will be carried out in coming days against it, they announced.