ANP chief demands merger of Fata into KP

PESHAWAR: Awami National Party (ANP) chief Asfandyar Wali Khan has demanded the new prime minister to immediately announce scrapping of the Frontier Crimes Regulation and merger of Fata with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in line with the constitutional recommendation of the Fata reforms committee.

Addressing the launching ceremony of a book on the life of Pakhtun nationalist politician Afzal Khan Lala (late) here on Sunday, he said the uproar of Panama issue had ended and now the new prime minister and his cabinet should focus attention on solving the problems faced by the country.

He said that the Fata reforms were a longstanding demand of the tribal people, but the former prime minister did not resolve the issue only to appease two persons, he said while referring to Maulana Fazlur Rahman and Mahmood Khan Achakzai, both of whom had opposed the merger of tribal areas with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and implementation of Fata reforms.

He expressed concerns over the latest trends in the political arena of the country. He said the current politics was getting out of understanding. “After the Panama issue, Ayesha Gulalai and Ayesha Ahad came to surface. However, the committee formed by the federal government should be allowed to probe the matter and silence should be observed over the matter till the decision of the committee,” he added.

ANP senior vice-president Ghulam Ahmad Bilour, secretary general Mian Iftikhar Hussain, provincial president Ameer Haider Khan Hoti, Latif Afridi, Afghan Ambassador Omar Zakhilwal, Bushra Gohar and others also spoke on the occasion.

Asfandyar Wali Khan paid tribute to Afzal Khan Lala, who played a key role in restoration of peace in Swat valley. He said that his services for peace would be remembered in history with golden words. He said that Afzal Khan Lala struggled for supremacy of the democratic system throughout his life. 

The ANP chief said that war was still going on in the region. He stressed the need for unity of all the political forces for peace in the country, saying that everyone should play a role for restoration of peace.

Speaking on the occasion, Mian Iftikhar Hussain said that they had been ousted from the political arena in 2013 at the behest of invisible forces. He said the 2013 elections were administered by someone else and they were defeated at the “Umpire’s signal”.

He said that they rendered every sacrifice for sustainability of the democratic system and accepted the results of previous general elections despite reservations. The parliament should remain supreme in the country and politicians should not surrender the powers of the parliament to any other institution, he added.