View from Waziristan: ‘Is there anything in the budget to bring peace to our areas?’

Tribesmen say lack of checks and balances, appropriate policies obstruct change in the tribal belt.

DERA ISMAIL KHAN: Tribesmen from the war-ridden agencies of North and South Waziristan say the federal budget is unlikely to have an impact on their lives due to the presence of a corrupt political administration system, which hinges on the centuries-old Frontier Crimes Regulation.

“Until the political administration is properly audited and held accountable, a development budget for the tribal people will remain a dream,” said Ali Muhammad, a social worker and former councillor from Wana, South Waziristan.

“The practice of commissions taken by political administration officials and mafias in development schemes still exists in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata). So the amount allocated to development in the budget is likely to benefit corrupt officials as opposed to the general public.”

“Is there anything in the budget to bring peace to our areas?” questioned Bajan Khan, a local farmer from Wana. “Every year when the budget is presented we hear the prices of commodities will increase… I work in a field and own a small apple orchard, but so far the government has not provided me any seeds, fertiliser or training. There is nothing to help farmers in the budget.”



Haroon Khan, a resident of Mir Ali, North Waziristan, is worried about the increase in sales tax from 16% to 17%. Khan said shopkeepers could increase prices at their own discretion under the pretence of raised GST as there are no checks and balances carried out by the political administration in the market. Moreover, most wholesale dealers in Waziristan focus on consumers in Afghanistan and smuggle food items over the border, causing inflation in Fata, he added.

On the other hand, Shaheryar Mehsud, a journalist from South Waziristan now settled in Tank, told The Express Tribune the allocation of funds to the Gomal Zam Dam project was important as it would play a significant role in creating employment in Waziristan. “It will have a positive impact on the economic conditions of the tribesmen,” he added.

However, tribesmen remain sceptical of the budget’s impact given the lack of accountability in the prevailing system of governance. “We are looking to Islamabad to bring a change into our lives,” said Ahmad Khan, a local. “Tribesmen need more than a budget because our areas are ravaged by war. We need a special budget for Fata.”

Published in The Express Tribune, June 15^th, 2013.