QWP accuses government of using delaying tactics in Fata-KP merger

CHARSADDA: Qaumi Watan Party (QWP) chief Aftab Sherpao has said that the government is using delaying tactics in the merger of Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

He was speaking at a public meeting at Daulatpura area in Shabqadar on Friday wherein Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf activist Hidayatur Rehman Khan announced joining the QWP. The QWP always promoted the interest of the public and that was why people were joining the party, he added.

The QWP would continue efforts for equal rights of the people Fata, he said, adding, the Fata's merger with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa was the only solution to bring changes in the lives of the tribespeople. He said that uniting Pakhtuns in Pakistan would usher in an era of peace and prosperity in the country.

Aftab Sherpao also demanded that the government should abolish the draconian Frontier Crimes Regulation (FCR) that had enslaved the people of Fata. The QWP leader said the delimitation issue should be resolved on a priority basis. He welcomed the government decision on the bill regarding fresh delimitation that would be tabled on December 19. He said though it was a delayed process, it would help in conducting timely polls.

Aftab Sherpao came down hard on Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan for his repeated demand for early polls. He said that the demand of the PTI for early elections would deprive the province of the increased seats in the National Assembly.

"Due to the incompetency of the provincial government the province could not get its shares in the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and National Finance Commission (NFC) Award," Aftab Sherpao lamented.