CM says tribal people should be consulted

Fata, KP merger

PESHAWAR: Chief Minister Pervez Khattak said on Wednesday that though his government was in favour of merging the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) into Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the tribal people should be taken into confidence before making a decision.

He was talking to reporters here at Chief Minister’s House after presiding over a meeting on the merger of Fata into KP. The chief minister said the merger of Fata into KP was in the interests of the tribal people, but such a decision should be taken with the consent of the tribespeople.

Pervez Khattak said the government didn’t want to impose any decision on tribal people. However, he expressed the hope that the merger of Fata into KP would soon be finalised. After the merger of tribal areas into KP, he said, the arrangements for holding local bodies elections would be finalised for the solution of problems being faced by the tribal people.

Pervez Khattak said the Fata Reforms Committee had presented a five-year plan for Fata’s merger with KP, which he said would not serve the purpose. He said the tribal people should be mentally prepared for the new system as they couldn’t afford experimenting with Fata. The chief minister asked the federal government to bring amendments for the purpose instead of creating confusion.