CORRECTED COPY: IDLG DIRECTOR POPAL MEETS WITH

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 KABUL 000570

SIPDIS

DEPARTMENT FOR SRAP, SCA/FO, SCA/A, EUR/RPM, INR/B
STATE PASS USAID FOR ASIA/SCAA
USFOR-A FOR POLAD

E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/02/2020
TAGS: PGOV PREL KDEM AF
SUBJECT: CORRECTED COPY: IDLG DIRECTOR POPAL MEETS WITH
AMBASSADOR: MOVING AHEAD ON THE DISTRICT DELIVERY PROGRAM

Classified By: Ambassador Karl W. Eikenberry for Reasons 1.4(b) and (d)


1. (C) Summary: In the course of a February 6 meeting with
the Ambassador, Independent Director of Local Governance
(IDLG) Jelani Popal previewed his upcoming visit to Helmand
to help finalize preparations for the rollout there of the
District Delivery Program (DDP). He indicated he can work
with the U.S. approach to supporting DDP but said he hopes
over time that all donors will adopt the approach and funding
mechanism being employed for Helmand,s Nad Ali district,
with funding going primarily through the Ministry of Finance.
He confirmed that the President has signed a decree
designating the IDLG as the coordinating agency within GIRoA
for DDP. On election reform, he endorsed the replacement of
the head and the chief electoral officer of the Independent
Election Commission (IEC) as well as the introduction of much
stricter vetting standards for candidates in this year's
parliamentary election. He also called for reducing
international representation on the Election Complaint
Commission from three positions to one. Popal said that
governors in Paktika, Uruzgan, Ghazni, Baghlan, Takhar and
Samargan provinces will soon be changed out. The Ambassador
raised concerns about several other sitting governors, and
the IDLG chief accepted his offer of additional background
information on them. End summary.

Comparing notes on the District Delivery Program
-------------- ---


2. (SBU) On February 6 the Ambassador hosted IDLG Director
Popal to a dinner attended also by the Embassy,s
Coordinating Director for Development and Economic Affairs
Ambassador Wayne and USAID Deputy Mission Director Black.
Popal explained that the next day he would be leading a
50-person delegation including several ministers and deputy
ministers; National Directorate of Security (NDS) officials;
and several Afghan journalists to Helmand to help finalize
preparations for and publicize the rollout of the District
Delivery Program in Nad Ali district. Popal noted that the
IDLG,s own role in DDP has been strengthened by the
President,s signature of a decree designating his agency as
GIRoA,s coordinator for the program. When Popal expressed
some doubt that the President would make another trip to
Helmand in advance of the upcoming operation in Marjah, the
Ambassador pressed him to encourage the President to go.


3. (U) Popal described the DDP as a "bottom-up" program
"with national involvement." In the form being launched in
Nad Ali (with the UK playing the lead international role, the
program involves filling vacant civil service positions and
using block grant funds through the Ministry of Finance to
pay for projects and services at the provincial and district
level. The specifics of the district plan have emerged from
consultations led by the Governor that have included local
stakeholders and ministry representatives from Kabul (Popal
put the input mix as 20 percent local and 80 percent Kabul).
The plan also allows local residents a degree of influence
over where national-level initiatives are undertaken, e.g.
the exact location of a health center. Interaction between
ministry representatives and the Provincial Development
Committee on the DDP plan is meant to ensure it remains
aligned with the Afghanistan National Development Strategy
(ANDS) and national-level priorities. The Provincial Council
is also taking part in the plan,s review to help keep some
degree of balance between what is going into Helmand,s
various districts. Popal acknowledged that other donors may
initially prefer to support a slightly different model and
funding approach; but he said he hoped that over time, the UK
model, including extensive channeling of funds through the
Ministry of Finance, would be adopted more broadly.


4. (U) The Ambassador noted the Embassy,s interest in
hearing from the IDLG on lessons learned from DDP
implementation in Nad Ali; Popal indicated a willingness to
share planned monthly progress reports. For his part,
Ambassador Wayne recalled the elements of the U.S. approach,
namely using a basic government services package as a
starting point for any district, tailored as needed to the
realities on the ground. This would be combined with funds
through the Ministry of Finance to support salary supplements
and operational expenses as well as some specific,
community-requested projects that for the first year at least
would be funded through existing USAID programs. USAID will
also target DDP districts with its full array of programs and
include those districts within the focus of its other
income-generation initiatives. Popal indicated the IDLG can
work with this approach.


KABUL 00000570 002 OF 003


Parliamentary elections
--------------


5. (C) The Ambassador encouraged Popal to press President
Karzai to the take action soon on replacing the top officials
of the Independent Election Commission (IEC) and on
instituting needed electoral reforms to enable the
International Community to offer financial support for the
elections. Popal agreed that both IEC head Ludin and chief
electoral officer Najafi have become too controversial to be
left in place. Regarding reform, he called for two basic
changes ) reducing the international representation on the
Elections Complaints Commission from three positions to one
so Afghans will hold the majority; and tightening the vetting
of candidates so as to exclude warlords, criminals and other
undesirables. He suggested current candidate vetting through
the Disarmament of Illegal Armed Groups (DIAG) is woefully
inadequate. He warned that, under the present system, the
new parliament could continue to include many drug
traffickers and other malefactors. He would therefore
support replacement of the key IEC personnel and initiating a
very severe vetting process for candidates running for a seat
in the Lower House. The IDLG Director advised that major
international stakeholders looking for action from Karzai on
electoral reform should approach him individually rather than
as a group.

Sub-national Governance Policy
--------------


6. (SBU) Asked about his statements at the London
Conference suggesting the Cabinet will soon approve the
long-awaited Sub-National Governance Policy, Popal said he is
hoping to have it on the agenda of next week,s Cabinet
meeting. He acknowledged there may be "one or two"
ministries that still have some reservations, but he
expressed confidence that the President will push the policy
through, given his support for it.

Governor Appointments
--------------


7. (C) Popal indicated there will be governor changes soon
in Paktika, Uruzgan, Ghazni, Baghlan, Takhar and Samargan
provinces. He said he is also trying hard to get Atta and
Sherzai removed but is not optimistic he will succeed.
Contrary to fairly widely held concerns, Popal insisted
Atta,s removal would have no impact on security. He claimed
that most Pashtuns, Hazaras and Uzbeks do not support Atta,
and Tajik support is divided, with half of it going to
President Karzai. He said Vice President Fahim Khan has been
lobbying for retention of Atta (despite their differences
during the Presidential election). Popal reasoned that this
is simply a case of Tajik warlords protecting one another.
He insisted Governors should represent President Karzai
(which Atta has not),and exceptions should not be made
simply because particular governors might be effective at
maintaining security. He conceded, however, that Karzai is
reluctant to remove Atta since he provides a good
counterweight to the influence of Dostum (with Uzbeks) and
Mohaqeq (with Hazaras) in Balkh. To underscore the
importance of keeping Mohaqeq,s influence in check, he went
on to recall how Ismail Khan had managed to put a halt to
earlier efforts by the Iranians to purchase land via Afghan
Shias in an attempt to extend their influence from Herat to
Hazara areas inside the country. On Sherzai, Popal suggested
the Governor,s good personal relationship with the President
was likely to keep him in his current job.


8. (C) The Ambassador raised a number of other governors
not cited by Popal as due for replacement soon. On Kapisa,
the AMB indicated both the French and U.S. have very negative
things to say about Governor Abobaker. Popal admitted the
IDLG too has received some adverse reports, but he did not
say explicitly that Abobaker is going to be removed.
Regarding Governor Salangi in Parwan, about whom the
Ambassador also expressed concern, the IDLG chief said simply
that his own criticism of Salangi is not criminal-related but
is based in the Governor,s lack of competence. He also
cited the recent incident in which Salangi tried to steer the
Koreans to lease land for their new PRT from friends of the
Governor rather than provide government land, as the Koreans
preferred (and the IDLG had instructed). Ambassador Wayne
raised concerns about Paktya Governor Hamdard and corruption.
Popal insisted he has received no complaints about the
Governor and feels he has been doing a good job. Popal
suggested that any criticism of Hamdard could be rooted in
the fact that the Governor and the NDS are at odds and the

KABUL 00000570 003 OF 003


Governor has important detractors in both Dostum and Atta,
rivals from the north. Popal said he would be happy to
receive any additional information on Hamdard or others cited
by the Ambassador if such information went beyond the reports
already in the hands of the NDS, to which he has access. The
Ambassador offered to follow up.


9. (SBU) Particularly in light of the roll-out of the
District Delivery Program in Helmand, Popal mentioned that he
had already informed Governor Mangal that he will need to
remain in place in Helmand for another year. Asked about
President Karzai's failure during a recent visit to praise
Governor Mangal publicly while repeatedly making favorable
references to local strongman Shir Mohammad Akhundzada, Popal
insisted that Mangal remains on a firm footing with Karzai
and that it would have been against normal cultural practices
for the President to publicly endorse someone already
endorsed as his local agent by virtue of his position as
governor. In this context, he told the Ambassador he is
considering instituting a practice of providing governors in
hard-pressed provinces like Helmand periodic, two-week breaks
to help them cope with the demands of their job.


10. (C) Comment: Obviously recovered from the rigors of
last year,s election and its aftermath, Popal appeared
upbeat and in control. The Presidential decree strengthening
his hand on DDP is likely reinforcing the general enthusiasm
we have seen for some time now from the IDLG for the District
Delivery Program. It remains to be seen whether this sign of
Presidential backing will extend to Presidential support in
the Cabinet for endorsement there in the proximate future of
the new Sub-National Governance policy (on hold since
August),as Popal predicts. We were certainly left
unconvinced by his suggestion that Governor Atta in Balkh has
only negligible remaining support; a recent visit to Balkh by
the Ambassador would indicate otherwise.


10. (SBU) Comment (cont'd) We plan to follow up with
Popal,s deputy when he returns to Afghanistan this week to
ensure we have full understanding and support from the IDLG
for our &basic services package8 approach and our proposed
funding mechanism. We will also pursue with the IDLG our
concern over the retention, at least for now, of a number of
current, badly performing (or worse) governors. End Comment.

Eikenberry