Swift parliamentary approval would have been a notable achievement for the government in an otherwise barren term. The minority view, which also includes the Tribal Maliks-dominated jirga council rejects merger on various grounds, namely seeking the consent of the local people, going for a separate province, retaining the jirga system and rewaj, or that FATA merger would rile the Afghan government because of its Durand Line misconceptions. Unfortunately, even a meeting of the PM and COAS with the JUI-F chief has proved fruitless. But indefinite evasions and lame excuses will be counter-productive, the people of FATA deserve better. Merger remains the only workable and viable option.

Source: Pakistan Today December 22, 2017 07:52 UTC