PESHAWAR: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Governor Shah Farman on Thursday said that a 10-member Jirga Pakistan Committee would soon be set up to recommend and suggest measures for transparency in development projects in tribal districts.
Addressing a grand jirga at Governor House, he said that the committee would give its suggestions and recommendations related to all development sectors to KP chief minister.
He said that anti-state elements and enemies of the state wanted to sabotage the peace process in the country especially in the tribal districts to destabilise the country, adding that “anti-state and anti-Islam powers cannot tolerate Pakistan as an Islamic nuclear power”. KP CM Mehmood Khan, Peshawar Corp Commander Lt General Mazher Shaheen and KP governor attended the grand jirga as chief guests.
The jirga discussed measures to bring improvement in health, education, irrigation, power and other sectors besides suggestions how to improve peace in tribal districts and create employment opportunities for the tribal youth.
Speaking on the occasion, CM Khan said that it was imperative to address decades’ of sense of deprivation among tribal people, adding that on the directives of Prime Minister Imran Khan, he paid several visits to tribal areas and he had better understanding of the problems being faced by the tribal people.
He said that the government wanted to equip the tribal children and youth with modern education to make them useful citizen of the country. CM Khan assured that the suggestions of the jirga would be implemented in this regard.
He informed participants of the jirga that Pakistan Army has given Rs50 billion from its budget and KP government has contributed Rs11 billion for the development of tribal areas, adding that merged districts are part of KP now and it is responsibility of the government to bring these areas at par with other developed districts.
He said that education, health and employment generation were among top priorities of the provincial government in tribal districts. The tribal youth would get loans under Insaf Rozgar Programme while Rs6.80 billion have been allocated for power supply in merged districts.
The CM said that he would visit Mohmand next week to inaugurate two grid stations there while the upgradation of grid stations in other merged districts was also underway. The people of Mohmand would get clean drinking water from Mohmand Dam and the local youth would be given job opportunities, he added.
