NWFP Governor Khalilur Rehman on Wednesday supported the call for integrating tribal areas with the Frontier Province saying it would help the tribesmen. âI think it (the merger) will be good for tribal people and I support the idea,â he told journalists. Pro-Kabul Awami National Party was the first political party to demand the Federally Administered Tribal Areasâ integration with NWFP. However, the demand received a strong reaction from tribal elders. âIt will take time for the idea to mature,â he told Daily Times. | "How much time?" "I'd guess about five or six hundred years. Though I'm not sure I'd use the word 'mature' relating to the tribal areas..." |
He said the federal government should hold talks with Afghanistan to extend the Durand Line Treaty, as it has expired. âThe government should seek extension of the Durand Line Treaty.â He said this when journalists sought his opinion on Pakistanâs proposal to lay a fence along the Afghan border. The governor expressed concern over the recent disorder in South Waziristan, saying that he would urge the senior military command to invite Baitullah Mehsud for talks to discuss the situation.