ISLAMABAD: In an unprecedented show of unity, legislators from the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) have called upon the government to abolish the tribal areas and merge them with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.

Senators and MNAs from the tribal areas have traditionally never been united on any other issue in the past, but the demand to make Fata areas a part of KP has not only brought them together, but has also managed to bring together individuals who have hitherto been poles apart on most issues.

“All 19 MNAs and senators have agreed to join the struggle. We have this in writing,” Shahji Gul Afridi, an independent MNA from the Khyber Agency, told a press conference on Monday.

The Fata parliamentarians have also drafted a bill in this regard, which is likely to be presented in the National Assembly Secretariat on Wednesday, after a final meeting of all political parties who have a presence in the tribal areas.

“Constitutional amendments are needed and we will lobby with all parties in both the houses to ensure that the bill passes with a two-thirds majority,” Shahabuddin Khan, the PML-N MNA from Fata, said.

MNAs, senators have already drafted bill to amend Articles 246 and 247 in order to change Fata’s status

The draft bill calls for amendments to articles 246 and 247 of the Constitution to change the status of the tribal areas.

These areas include six Frontier Regions (FRs) – FR Peshawar, FR Kohat, FR Bannu, FR Lakki Marwat, FR DI Khan and FR Tank, as well as the seven tribal agencies – Bajaur, Orakzai, Mohmand, Khyber, Kurram, North and South Waziristan.

“Why do residents of Fata have ‘half-citizen’ status,” Mr Afridi asked, adding that there was a need to streamline the system of administration in Fata to control growing extremism and lawlessness.

He acknowledged that there had been tribal and other personal rivalries among the elected representatives of Fata, but now everybody was united for the future of their region.

“Streamlining the administrative system in Fata will not only be beneficial for us, but for the whole of Pakistan,” he said. “The fire spreading from Fata has already created disturbances across the country; we want to control the situation by bringing the constitution of Pakistan [to Fata].”

He said that making Fata a part of KP would also strengthen the defence capabilities of the country because forces that were stationed in various agencies could then be redeployed to the border with India.

Nearly all the MNAs present at the press conferences said that the most serious issue they faced was the provision of justice and obtaining approval for development works.

“Several issues could be resolved if we had local government departments and a judiciary there,” Shahabuddin Khan said.

Outlining their action plan for the future, the Fata parliamentarians said that they had already held meetings with the Peshawar corps commander who welcomed their decision.

Mr Afridi said they planned to meet the president, the prime minister, the army and ISI chiefs because the army was a key stakeholder in Fata, especially in the context of the ongoing operation against terrorists.

“We have met KP chief minister as well, and he welcomed the opportunity to accept Fata as part of the province,” he added.

The recent phase of reforms in Fata was initiated in 2013 by the former PPP-led government when it amended the Frontier Crimes Regulation (FCR), which was introduced by the British in the 1850s to rein in local tribesmen.

However, the reforms could not move ahead due to various pressures. But tribal representatives in the National Assembly now say that the situation has changed as both the army and allied agencies support the move.

“We have held meetings with the senior officers and they have acknowledged that the field will be left open for extremists, law breakers and even Taliban after the army leaves the area following the current ongoing operation,” one of the Fata MNAs said.

Published in Dawn, September 8th, 2015

On a mobile phone? Get the Dawn Mobile App: Apple Store | Google Play