Jirga proposes referendum for KP-Fata merger

BANNU: A jirga on Friday opposed the proposed merger of tribal areas with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and called for holding a referendum over the issue.

The demand was made during the jirga of representatives of Utmanzai and Ahmadzai tribes of Frontier Region (FR) Bannu held here. Prominent among those attended the jirga included Malik Muiez Khan Wazir, Khan Bahadur, Alamgir Khan, Malik Taj Muhammad Khan and others.

The participants said that those supporting the prosed merger of tribal areas with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa did not know about the problems being faced by the tribespeople and did not care about the Fata people.

They alleged these people wanted to occupy and exploit the resources of tribal areas. The jirga members said that decisions were being imposed on tribespeople from outside over the merger issue. They announced to support the stance of Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl and Pakhtunkhwa Milli Awami Party over the Fata reforms and announced to participate in Islamabad sit-in over the issue. The Jirga members asked the government to seek the opinion of tribespeople over the proposed Fata reforms and decide the future of tribal areas as per the aspiration of tribespeople.