Governor NWFP Lieutenant General Ali Mohammad Jan Aurakzai (Retd) Saturday urged on the tribal elders from Frontier Region (FR) Bannu to deny shelter to criminals, anti-state elements and not to allow extremists to commit offences from their area.
He was addressing a jirga invited to the Governor's House on Friday for talks on the increase in crime and terrorist activities in the region. "The responsibility to ensure law and order and maintenance of peace falls upon the tribesmen within their respective areas and under no circumstances can they be absolved of it, which is in consonance with law as well as tradition," said Aurakzai.
"This is a very crucial juncture and if you fail to take the right decisions, you will be doing the greatest disservice to your people," he added. He asked the tribesmen to take all possible steps to put the situation right.
The governor expressed grave concern and sorrow over the tragic suicide attack on a military convoy in FR Bannu on July 4 which claimed the lives of four Pak Army jawans and two local children, playing cricket. He vowed to bring the culprits of this dastardly crime to justice and asked the tribesmen to identify the elements who were using their soil for acts of terrorism.
He said that anti-social activities like kidnapping and vehicle- snatching etc were on the rise in FR Bannu and the tribesmen should curb this tendency. "You should not allow anti-social and anti-state elements to use your soil for their nefarious designs" the Governor stressed.
The governor asked the elders to rise for peace in the area, which was in their own interest. "We don't want the tribesmen to suffer but if the situation does not improve then the government will take necessary measures to maintain its writ" he maintained. He reiterated that tribal issues should be resolved through jirgas and the well-established tribal traditions and that the Government would provide all support and assistance to the tribesmen to eliminate terror and crime in their area.
Governor Aurakzai said that peace and development of tribal area was his sole mission. He said that the government was investing huge money for the development of these areas and the development outlay had reached a record level of Rs 7.5 billion in just six years from less than a billion in 2001.
The Frontier Regions, ignored in the past, had been brought at par with the Agencies and that showed the commitment of the Government. He urged the tribesmen to realise the gravity of the situation and rise to the occasion to bring peace in their area. Additional Chief Secretary FATA Javed Iqbal and Secretary Law and Order FATA Arbab Muhammad Arif were also present on the occasion.