Daily Times

Abraham Lincoln has famously said that a ballot is stronger than a bullet. The right to vote to pick their rulers and lawmakers gives people the power not only to express their own views but also to change the social structures and legal systems they consider oppressive.

The Federally Administered Tribal Areas comprise a landmass of 27,200 square kilometers and a population of five million inhabitants according to 2017 census. The region has been grossly neglected since the inception of Pakistan. The area had long been governed under the colonial legacy of Frontier Crimes Regulation, 1901, till the passage of the 31st Constitutional Amendment. The only condition set by the tribes to join Pakistan was the incorporation of the Rewaj Act in the FCR. The law comprises four tenets, namely nang or honour, melmastia or hospitality, badal or revenge and nanawati or asylum.

Unfortuantely, no leader in the history of Pakistan tried to liberate the Tribal Areas from the oppressive and exploitative Frontier Crimes Regulation. In the constitutional scheme, FATA was a federal subject. It fell under the direct supervision of the president. In his absence the NWFP governor was responsible according to Articles 246 and 247 of the 1973 Constitution. The FCR denied basic rights to tribesmen and there was no right to be represented by an attorney to argue one’s case or to appeal a verdict.

There was no FATA representative in the provinvial assembly until the passage of the 31st Amendment. The political isolation resulted in poverty, illiteracy, underdevelopment, crime, extremism and terrorism. The region has failed to take off economically

Adult franchise was first introduced in 1996 and the Political Parties Act extended to the region in 2011. There was no FATA representative in the provinvial assembly until the passage of the 31st Amendment. The political isolation resulted in poverty, illiteracy, underdevelopment, crime, extremism and terrorism. The region has failed to take off economically.

Facilities for communication, transport and the energy infrastructure are missing. The literacy rate is an abysmal 33.3 per cent. The female literacy rate is 7.8 per cent. There is a healthcare facility for 4,200 people and a doctor for 7,800 people. More than 60 per cent of the population lives below the poverty line. The unemployemnt rate is a staggering 80 per cent.

A lot has changed with the 31st Amendment. Elections for 16 seats in the provincial assembly will be held in the June. Together with reserved seats this will bring the FATA representation to 21 seats.

Now it for the FATA residents to use their ballot wisely. They must vote against terrorism, extremism, trafficking and drug smuggling and for development and prosperity.

The writer is a doctor of pharmacy