Tribal elders want separate province

BARA: The Qabail Tahafuz Movement has asked the government to announce separate province 'Qabailistan' forthwith. Speaking at a gathering here, former federal minister Hameedullah Jan Afridi, Malik Khan Marjan, Malik Waris Khan, Malik Abdul Razzaq, Malik Ziarat Gul Mohmand, Pakistan Awami Inqilabi League president Malik Attaullah and others said the government forcibly merged the former Fata into KP. They said the govt had not taken the tribal people into confidence before merging the ex-Fata into KP. The speakers said that the tribal people were deprived of their legal and other basic rights. The elders maintained the tribal people should not be punished for their sacrifices. The speakers complained that non-local people were working for the non-governmental organisations while it was the right of the local people. "We want public service commission establish for tribal people as they have suffered during prolonged militancy," Chairman Qabail Qaumi Tehreek, Hameedullah Jan Afridi said.