Fata should be merged with KP without any delay: Salim Saifullah

ISLAMABAD: Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) should be merged with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa without any hesitation or further delay, said former federal minister and PML-N leader Salim Saifullah Khan.

While talking to reporters here on Friday Salim Saifullah Khan said, “Some people having wasted interests are opposing FATA merger with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa which is against the wishes of the people of tribal belt.”

He said FATA people are patriotic people and they have served and are serving the nation in every walk of life, so they must be given all rights of citizens. “Tribal people are courageous people who love Pakistan and have defended the western border of the country without any material benefits, so they must be given are rights of equal citizen,” the former minister added.

“With the merger of FATA with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa they will get rid of FCR and help the people to stream line in the 21st century,” Salim Saifullah added.He declared that all conspiracies against the merger of Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) into Khyber Pakhtunkhwa would be foiled. “Any solution short of merger would not be acceptable to us,” he said.

He said a strategy should be evolved to speed up the pace of merger and vowed that they would continue the struggle to secure the rights of tribal people. “People of FATA and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa have one culture, one religion and one language, so what the hurdle in FATA merger with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa?” he asked.

The former minister urged Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to take immediate steps to merge FATA with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and win the hearts of the tribal belt. “FATA people are loving people and give respect to those who give them respect and love, so by merging FATA with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the prime minister can win their hearts,” he added.