ISLAMABAD - Federal Minister for States and Frontier Region (SAFRON) Lt Gen. (Retd) Abdul Qadir Baloch yesterday expressed his helplessness to facilitate early repatriation of internally displaced persons.
He said his ministry was toothless as all the administrative powers were vested in the Governor House Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
Speaking at a ceremony regarding award of scholarships to Mehsud IDPs of South Waziristan, the minister regretted that he may fail to meet the expectations of FATA’s people as his ministry was too powerless to ensure uplift activities in tribal parts of the country.
“The Ministry of SAFRON has its historical importance. Founder of the nation Muhammad Ali Jinnah held this ministry with himself. But today, the Governor House has all the administrative powers. My ministry is helpless,” the minister, who according to reports is at loggerheads with the Governor KP, told the gathering. “And I am ashamed to say that we (government) failed to rehabilitate Mehsud IDPs even after the lapse of 10 years. The sacrifices rendered by Mehsud tribe are matchless,” the minister maintained.
The ceremony was attended by Senator Saleh Shah and MNA Jamaluddin and retired bureaucrats and students hailing from the volatile South Waziristan.
The National Testing Service-Pakistan (NTS) announced offering scholarships to talented students of the Internally Displaced Persons after the military announced that parts of South Waziristan were cleared of militants.
But the minister sounded pessimistic about the full fledge return of IDPs accepting the government’s failure in facilitating the displaced communities. “Today, Azad Jammu and Kashmir is our territory mainly because of the bravery shown by Mehsud tribe in fighting enemy forces. Though sacrifices of all FATA tribes have contributed to freeing AJK from the clutches of enemies but Mehsud tribe stands at the top,” he added.
Baloch asked members of Mehsud tribe to rise up and fundraise for youth in South Waziristan whose lives away from homes had taken a heavy toll on the academic career of students.
He praised the NTS for taking part in nation building process regarding allocation of Rs10 million funds for IDPs of South Waziristan.
An agreement to this effect was signed between NTS and Mehsud Welfare Association (MWA), a non-profit social forum headed by former Additional Inspector General (AIG) Rehmat Khan Mehsud.
The minister candidly said that the terror sanctuaries in Waziristan areas came into existence mainly because of the wrong policies of successive regimes.
He warned that IS or Daesh will gain influence in FATA in near future if the government failed to bring lives of FATA people at par with that of the people in Punjab. “You cannot bury militancy or extremism in FATA until the socio-economic status of the area is not improved,” he added.
After the 9/11, the minister said infrastructure in tribal belt had been totally damaged. “There is hardly a structure in South Waziristan that is not affected. People have lost their abodes. Nobody is sure as to when will the IDPs return to their native land,” he said.
The SAFRON minister said that his ministry was pondering over launching international appeal to invite philanthropists and donors to help the displaced Mehsud tribe. “Donors will be attracted to know that there are people who have not returned to their homes for the last 10 years,” he said.
Senator Saleh Shah while speaking on the occasion appreciated the step taken by the NTS and said that it was a wonderful move by the NTS, which should be continued. MNA Jamaluddin said that it was a bold initiative by the NTS and this should be sustained in long-term.
Keeping in view that education sector in the tribal areas was in a shambles, the NTS decided to offer scholarships to the displaced kids of the area.
MWA Chairman Rehmat Khan Mehsud praised the step taken by the NTS Pakistan. He said that Mahsud Welfare Association had main focus to educate the kids for a better tomorrow.
In 2009, Pakistan military launched anti-insurgents operation Rah-e-Nijat (path to salvation) in South Waziristan Agency, which triggered mass exodus of tribal families to down districts of the country.