ISLAMABAD -  Jamhoori Watan Party (JWP) Chief Shahzain Bugti has claimed that the provincial autonomy had been suppressed after the 18th amendment in the Constitution as the people of Balochistan are being constantly kept away from provincial autonomy.

“The people of Balochistan are still ignorant about the provincial autonomy as they are kept deprived of their fundamental rights,” Shahzain said this while addressing at the Aiwan-e-Waqt here on Tuesday.

He said that the matter of Bugti tribe’s IDPs has not been resolved so far as they could not participate in the census activity. He said that former prime minister Nawaz Sharif had made several announcements regarding the rehabilitation of Bugti tribe’s IDPs but unfortunately could not be implemented.

Shahzain further said that currently some 0.175 million IDPs were wondering in the three provinces, living in miserable conditions, for the last 11 years but no one is extending a helping hand to them.

He said that camps were established for the IDPs of FATA and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province and they were provided monthly assistance and food package and then rehabilitated in their respective areas but there is no one to assist the Bugti tribe’s IDPs and help them rehabilitate in their native areas.

He called for early rehabilitation of the IDPs so that they could take part in the election process and elect their representatives. He said that JWP was being entrapped in different issues aimed to keep it away from the election process. He resolved that his party would continue struggle for attainment of the basic rights of Baloch people.

He also strongly criticised the poor performance of provincial government, adding corruption is ruling the roost in the province. He said that government jobs were being sold in Balochistan.

Furthermore, he said, employments were given to people of other provinces in the Sui Southern and Sui Northern gas departments, usurping the rights of Baloch people.

He said that the China Pakistan Economic Corridor [CPEC] is being called a game changer in the region but its fruits did not reach the Baloch people. He said that Metro and Orange Trains were being set up in Lahore but the people of Balochistan have been deprived of their basic facilities of life.

He stressed the need for planning to provide fruits of CPEC to the people of Balochistan. He urged for provision of employment opportunities to the local people in the CPEC.

He said that terrorism has been overcome significantly but the menace could not be uprooted completely from the province. He said that federal and provincial governments have completely failed to break the terrorist network in the province.

He, however, appreciated Pak army efforts for the establishment of peace in the province.  He also called for accountability of those people who plundered the national exchequer.