CM accused of appointing non-locals in ex-Fata

JAMRUD: The elders here on Wednesday accused Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Mahmood Khan of appointing the residents of Swat and Shangla districts in the Health Department in the merged districts.

Speaking at a press conference, Malik Bismillah Afridi, Malik Yar Muhammad and others demanded an inquiry into the appointments of non-locals in the merged districts. They said the Government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa did not fulfill its promises made to the residents of the former tribal areas.

Malik Bismillah Afridi said the chief minister appointed 481 persons from other districts particularly from his constituency in merged districts.

He said tribespeople had rejected the merger from day one and they would not allow the government to deprive them of their due rights. Malik Bismillah Afridi said the people would continue holding peaceful protests against the so-called Fata merger.

He added that the tribal people did not accept the 25th Amendment, asking the Supreme Court to declare it null and void. The merger was carried out in haste without taking the local people into confidence, he added.