Mahsud elders announce attending PM rally today

PESHAWAR: The Mahsud tribal elders on Tuesday announced to participate in the public meeting of Prime Minister Imran Khan in South Waziristan tribal district today after Chief Minister Mahmood Khan assured them to pay compensation for the losses they suffered during the military operation.

The announcement came after a three-hour meeting between the Mahsud tribal elders and Chief Minister Mahmood Khan. Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf leader for South Waziristan and Mahsud tribal elder Dost Muhammad Khan led the tribal jirga.

The Mahsuds had earlier announced to boycott Imran Khan’s public rally in Spinkai Raghzai area of South Waziristan as a protest that the government had constantly been avoiding to pay compensation amount to the Mahsud people for their losses.

The government had years ago conducted surveys and sent reports about losses of the Mahsud people during the military operation but none of them have been paid yet that created a sense of deprivation among them.

The chief minister said it was sad to know that people had suffered for restoration of peace and lost their precious properties but they have not been paid yet.

The chief minister ordered immediate payments as per the survey reports.

Mahmood Khan said that Imran Khan would visit the Mahsuds-inhabited areas of South Waziristan after Ramazan and would announce development packages for them.

Dost Muhammad Mahsud informed the chief minister about genuine problems of the Mahsud people and demanded that headquarters and political compound of the district administration should be shifted to the Mahsud area from Tank district.

He said not a single development project has been carried out in the Mahsud-inhabited areas during the past 10 years.

He demanded the chief minister that 10,000 jobs should be given to the Mahsuds as they were not only in majority but had great contributions in restoration of peace.