PESHAWAR - Speakers at a seminar paid rich tributes to Baba-i-Pashto ghazal Amir Hamza Khan Shinwari on Sunday and called for Hamza Baba research centre at University of Peshawar.
A large number of noted poets, writers, students and delegates from FATA and parts of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa attended the event to mark 22nd death anniversary of the great Pashto poet.
Hamza Baba family members and fans organized the event. The participants deplored Khyber Agency political authorities for not releasing funds to conduct the seminar and Baba’s family members and devotees were forced to organize the event at their own expenses.
They appealed to KP governor to provide facilities to Hamza Baba Cultural Complex so that research and literary activities could be carried out at the Baba’s shrine.
Kalimullah Kalim Shinwari, chief of Hamza Pashto Adabi Jirga said that tribal people had pinned hopes on the new KP governor to do something better for them especially in the fields of education, art and culture. 
He said, “Hamza Baba Cultural Complex was though built by a military KP governor way back in 2002 but unfortunately even civilian governors failed to listen our genuine demands.”
“We want official staff, annual grand-in aid, and more books for library at Baba’s complex. We expect Iqbal Zafar Jhagra call our meeting and address our issues,” he maintained.
Speakers in their research papers praised literary contributions of Baba-i- Pashto ghazal Amir Hamza Khan Shinwari.
Participants demanded of the KP Governor Iqbal Zafar Jhagra to set up a Hamza Baba research cell at the University of Peshawar and also make arrangements to hand over Hamza Baba Cultural Complex in Landi Kotal subdivision of Khyber agency to Fata Education department.
Participants on behalf of Hamza Baba Adabi Jirga, through unanimously passed resolutions asking the newly appointed KP governor to issue orders for appointing necessary staff for the Hamza cultural complex promised in the original PC-1, allocate adequate funds for conducting  literary events at the Baba’s shrine, render translations of Hamza Shinwari and name, Peshawar -Torkham road after Hamza Baba. 
Aftab, a young poet said that Hamza Baba had good relations with great Urdu literati of time and had also had written number of books and research treaties in Urdu. 
He said Baba was quite known to Urdu literary circles and did not believe in chauvinistic nationalism. 
He said Hamza Baba was a playwright par excellence as he had contributed around 350 short plays to Radio Pakistan, Peshawar but regretted that the concerned authorities could not keep record of his plays based on social themes. 
The seminar was followed by a grand Pashto poetry session in which noted poets-Abaseen Yousafzai, Aseer Mangal, Dr Masood Zahid, Farooq Firaq, Rahmat Shah Lehaz Afridi, Kalim Shinwari, Iqbal Hussain Afgaar, Naseer Stori, Naveed Alam Shalmaani, Zahoor Khan Shinwari and  Dad Mohammad Dilsoz participated.