PESHAWAR: Jamiat Ulema-iIslam-Fazl(JUI-F)chiefMaulana Fazlur Rahman on Monday alleged that the federal government was considering reversing the merger of Fata with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
‘The merger of Fata with this province is being proposed to be revoked. High-level government men have directly told me that the decision to merge the region was a mistake. Those running this system have told me directly that they want to revoke the merger and restore its previous status, Mr Fazl told a convention of digital media workers of his party’s merged areas chapter here.
The JUI-F chief said the merged districts had, unfortunately, been made a laboratory.
He added that as a son of the soil and a Pakistani, he had questions that needed to be answered by the government.
Mr Fazl, however, said instead of addressing those concerns, character assassination campaigns were launched against him.’We’re aware of whose behest Fata was merged with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and whose interests would be served by bringing the areaback underfederalcontrol,’ he said.
The JUI-F chief said that at the time of the merger when the region’s political and constitutional future was being decided, he had expressed serious reservations, maintaining that conditions were not suitable.
He, however, said that even 10 years after the merger, the administrative system of the settled areas had yet to be established in the region.
Mr Fazl said there was still no patwari in the region and the government had failed to establish a land revenue system.
He added that a proper police system couldn’t be set up in the province, while the deputy commissioners posted to the region were baffled and helpless, wondering what to do.
‘Today, the issue is not political or constitutional. It’s about Fata’s resources and its economy,’ he said.
The JUI-F chief said he had been maintaining for a long time that the issue concerning erstwhile Fata was linked to its mineral resources.
He, however, said he was not opposed to foreign investment by multinational companies.Mr Fazl said Chinese investors, who were making huge investments under the ChinaPakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), were unhappy as hurdles were being created in the way of their investments.
‘If China is not happy about its investment here, other countries, too, would not invest,’ he said.
The JUI-F chief said the US was replacing the Chinese.
He said the governor’s rule and an emergency had been imposed in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on the pretext that the provincial government was siding with the terrorist narrative.Mr Fazl said that after the imposition of governor’s rule, nobody was talking about terrorism and everyone was discussing mineral resources.
He said that for the imposition of the governor’s rule in a province, the governor had to write to the president but no such letter had been written.
‘The cabinet’s decision was turned into a summary and shared with the president, which is against legal and constitutional procedures,’ he said.
The JUI-F chief insisted that the president was required to state in writing that he agreedwith the assertion that the civilian government had broken down, but no such written statement existed in that case.
He also wondered why two systems had been introduced in the province, with one part placed under the governor’s rule and the other under an emergency.
Mr Fazl claimed that Kohat division was also being included in the designated districts.
He said that after he raised his voice, he had become a target of character assassination campaigns, with mainstream and social media being used against him.
The JUI-F chief, however, said he had been facing such campaigns since the 1990s and would not be intimidated by such tactics.
‘Today, silence rules the political arena as everyone is silent but only we [JUI-F] are raising our voices,’ he said.
Mr Fazl said another narrative was being promoted, accusing the JUI-F of having a soft corner for militants.
‘You should be ashamed of saying this as the JUI-F is playing a pivotal role in opposing armed struggle among people, he said. He said such archaic tactics would not intimidate them.
‘If you want a fight, just dare to lay a hand on us and then you will witness the lengths to which our workers will go,’ he said.