Wardak governor talks of future, security, governance, development

LOGAR PROVINCE, Afghanistan – A journalist by trade, Muhammad Fidai has a resume that includes presidency of the South Asian Free Media Association, the founding of several publications,  and extensive work with non-government agencies.  He also speaks fluent English
With a long history of working with people and information, he has been well prepared for what could be the hardest job he’s had yet, the governor of Afghanistan’s Wardak province.

The province is home to areas like Tangi valley and Nerkh district, which have historically been hotbeds for insurgent activity.  For the last 18 months, Fidai has been the man appointed by Afghan president Hamid Karzai to improve security and increase the presence of national governance to the area.

In a country and province where increasing security means utilizing a still-expanding Afghan National Army and police force to win back the people’s support for a national government, the road ahead has the potential to be a long one for Fidai and the Soldiers of 1st Battalion, 503rd Infantry Regiment, 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team, who are deployed to the area.

Fidai sits with the 1st Bn., 503rd Inf. Regt. commander, U.S. Army Lt. Col. Matthew McFarlane, to discuss upcoming development projects and the current state of Wardak.  

Q: What is your biggest challenge in Wardak right now?

Fidai: One of the biggest challenges is to link stability and short-term projects to a long-term development.  This linkage is missing among the donor community.

Another challenge is better planning to deliver services here in the areas of security, governance and development.
Our focus is on stability and relief projects, but besides stability projects- we can develop a plan to execute projects that really bring fundamental change.
We need to execute infrastructure projects such as extracting mines and creating industries.  We have good apples, apricots and other agricultural products in Wardak, and we should establish factories for that industry, like juice factories.”

Roads, communications, large dams, like the one in Chak district, are infrastructure projects, which can create thousands of jobs for the people of Wardak.

Another challenge is the government. If you look at the history of Afghanistan, it’s traditionally a country that has elders heading the society in the village.  That is our history and that is how we work in this country.  There is, to some extent, mistrust.  Not against the government, but against some individuals in the government.  That doesn’t mean they don’t have trust in the organization, they don’t trust the individual in the organization.

Q: How do you plan to gain more trust and support from the Afghan people if there is some level of mistrust?

Fidai: We don’t have effective mediums of communication with the public so they don’t understand the progress that is being made. In other countries, they have radio, TV, cable networks, electricity -we don’t have that.  So the best traditional mechanism of communication is to hold shuras. That’s why holding shuras in places like Tangi is also very important.  It’s the key to the government being able to communicate with the people and to allowing the people to communicate their problems and issues to the government. Through the shuras we can seek joint solutions. Everyone is clear on what the role of the government is, what the role of the people is and the role of the U.S. Army in this province.

Q: What kind of changes have you seen in the Afghan people supporting and understanding the government’s role?

Fidai: People are starting to support the government more here, and we’ve seen many religious scholars very out spoken about the anti-Islamic and anti-humanity activities of insurgents in the province.  The enemy was strong in the past, and use to attack all five districts of Wardak simultaneously. Now with this help from the international community and ISAF we’ve reversed that threat.

Q: Can you elaborate on how security has improved in Wardak?

Fidai: One of the key factors to the improved security situation in Wardak is the arrival of the new U.S. forces to the province.  We have a very good team here in Wardak with this new brigade. I think this team is doing better in planning their activities in line with the priorities of the provincial government. Through this partnership, we’ve achieved many good things in the province.
 
Q: What other security measures are taking place?
Fidai: We’ve expanded the rule of law to the village and district levels.  Also, with their support, we’ve trained the Afghan National Police, army and the Afghan Public Protection Force.  So, all these are helping to improve the security situation in the country.

We have some problem areas like Tangi and Nerkh, but these could be tackled between U.S. forces, Afghan army, police and intelligence agencies.

Q: What about the threat of the Taliban and what programs are available to help ex-Taliban members reintegrate back into Afghan society?

Fidai: The Taliban build fear among the population. If you do not protect the population and do not deliver the services the people need, it gives the Taliban more opportunities to threaten the population.  I think we can improve security by one, expanding the Afghan Public Protection Program to those areas to provide public protection, to work with the elders and establish shuras in those areas, so we create awareness of our successes. Their presence will also help promote reintegration and reconciliation in those areas.

The AP3 is a good platform to reintegration for the Taliban who are fighting for economic reasons, so they’ll have incentives. Second, AP3 soldiers are familiar with their area and could be the best source for intelligence and third, we can create a gradual withdrawal for international forces from the area. In the long term, with the plans to expand the ANA and ANP, we will have a reserve of already-trained forces in the AP3.  Plus, it can create a better environment for the government to step in and deliver services to the people.



In his 18 month term as governor, Fidai has seen improvements, but he also acknowledges the work ahead.  Improving security in the area, providing jobs for the people of Wardak, spreading the Afghan government and its military and police components to even the most remote and dangerous parts of the province, and the development of industry and infrastructure are all keys to success in the region.  

However, he said he knows that without the trust of the people, communication and keeping the people informed of the progress being made, it cannot continue.