He is not a great conversationalist. He listens intently, occasionally chipping in with a word or two, to keep the conversation going. He can be intense. In the good old days, he would gulp down gallons of coffee and smoke like a chimney, often brooding and twirling his moustache.
Time and delicate health have mellowed him down — somewhat. His trial at Attock and long incarceration in the aftermath of the October 1999 military coup left deep scars on him and appear to have brought about a monumental change in his outlook and perspective.
But when it comes to straight-talking, with a tongue as sharp as a blade, the 62-year-old Sardar Mahtab from Bakote, Abbottabad, isn’t the one given to holding back. And it is this habit of straight-talking which would largely define and determine his stay in the sprawling colonial-era Governor House in Peshawar.
Mahtab’s ascension as the 30th Governor of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa comes at a critical juncture in Pakistan’s history. In his words, his role is cut out for him. Being the supremo of Fata, he has to oversee the ongoing complex negotiations with militants. If they succeed, he would have to work out a strategy for reconstruction and rehabilitation. And if the talks fail, he would have to brace for the fallout not just in Fata and KP but in the whole of Pakistan.
He would also be on the watch for a possible fallout of a Nato drawdown from neighbouring Afghanistan. Whatever happens in Afghanistan will have its impact on Fata and, by extension, on the whole country, he argues.
But his biggest challenge, he says, would be to overcome endemic corruption in an area considered a black hole where lucrative postings in two of the most sought-after tribal agencies often go to the highest bidders and where huge funds pumped in since 1947 have simply failed to make an impact.
Mainstreaming Fata and giving it a semblance of governance would top his agenda but it would be his relationship with the khakis that would largely determine his course of action in the tribal borderland.
He would learn in due course that most of his predecessors had an easy relationship with the military. The military have a huge presence in the tribal regions and it is there where they have suffered the most casualties. So they have stakes and a legitimate interest, they argue.
In the area where security is an overriding factor, every move has to be made carefully, from posting of competent and capable officers to taking key policy decisions. And this is where the problem starts. Who will decide what?
Next comes the transition from the military operation to civilian control. The army has been complaining that the civil administration has not been awfully good at administering areas that have seen clean-up operations. Some of the officers proposed for postings, they grumble privately, are either downright incompetent or corrupt to the core. For the latter Fata is a high-stakes game but those who have lost so many wouldn’t let anyone get rich or make foolish decisions over their dead bodies.
The civil administration has its own complaints. The khakis, they also grumble privately, aren’t too keen to let things go and continue to assert their authority. Often times there are differences on strategy. Who will take critical decisions?
Overseeing Fata might be challenging for Mahtab but no less important would be his role as the constitutional head of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa ruled by the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf. He was the leader of the opposition in the provincial assembly and now he would be the Governor of KP.
The sudden change of job description would mean that he would no longer be supposed to speak his mind in public and would have to quietly put down his thoughts mostly on files.
He would essentially be working as the eyes and ears of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on all things Fata and KP and as an adroit politician would be keeping the PTI in check, closely watching its moves. PM Sharif has put one of his most trusted lieutenants in the Governor House not for nothing. He would be required to prop up the Pakistan Muslim League-N in KP but perhaps the most challenging job for him would be to gain the stewardship of Fata and set a new course, something his predecessors failed to do.