Participants support Fata’s merger into KP

Consultative dialogue

Official says survey revealed 54pc favour merger

PESHAWAR: Amid some dissenting voices, most of the participants of a consultative dialogue supported the idea of merging the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. 

They believed the proposed merger would be beneficial for the tribal people and also for KP.  The Fata Research Centre (FRC) had invited experts and public representatives from the settled parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to know their opinion about the proposed merger.  

The dialogue was attended by political scientists, representatives of the local government system, politicians and people from the development sector. 

Dr Adnan Ali Shah, senior research fellow of the FRC, served as moderator of the event.  

In brief introductory remarks, he talked about the status of Fata and its proposed merger with KP.  

The researcher said the FRC conducted a survey on the issue in the tribal areas in which input of some 60,000 people was taken. He said 54 percent of the surveyed tribesmen were in favour of merger with KP, 18 percent voted against the merger and 26 percent wanted an independent province for the tribal areas.  

He said the tribespeople were facing a host of problems, including militancy, which was the root-cause of under-development and illiteracy. 

Most of the participants during the discussion voiced support to the merger of Fata with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.  

They said that there was nothing worrisome for the dwellers of KP if the tribal belt was merged with their province.  

The speakers said a large number of tribal people had already settled in different parts of the province and they owned properties and ran businesses.  

They pointed out that a good number of tribal students were also getting education in the institutions in Peshawar and other cities in the province.  

The speakers said within the country one cannot put any restriction on the mobility of the people and this was the reason that many people had migrated to the settled districts.  

They cited lack of education, healthcare and other basic facilities in the tribal areas as the reason for the migration of the tribal people to the down districts.  

The participants said the tribal areas were underdeveloped and governed under the Frontier Crimes Regulations (FCR).  

One participant said that status quo should be maintained in Fata. He believed that FCR was suitable for the tribal people. “They deserve this system,” he stressed.  

Others, however, said the merger would not only usher in social and economic development in the tribal areas, but also stop migration of the tribal people to the settled districts.  

They said the merger did not mean that all the people of Fata would shift to the settled districts of KP as it is all about the mainstreaming of the tribal areas and change of governance system.  

About economic viability of the merger for the province, they said KP would benefit from it.  

Dr Raza Rehman Qazi was against the merger of Fata with KP and said that instead of enlarging the already huge province an independent administrative unit should be created in the tribal areas.  

He said for better governance smaller provinces should be carved out in the already established provinces like KP and Punjab.  

“The problems of KP and Fata would multiply with the proposed merger as it would be difficult to manage the affairs of a large province,” he opined.  

Dr Sami Raza went a step further and said that KP and Fata should be divided into three smaller provinces.  

He said the province should be divided into three administrative zones and the tribal areas adjacent to each zone should be merged in it.