New army chief to be named by Wednesday

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has completed consultations with leaders of allied parties regarding the next army chief of the country and will make a decision in the next two or three days. The incumbent army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa is retiring on November 29 and the government is to make an appointment before that date.

The Ministry of Defence will formally initiate the process on Monday and a final decision will be made by Tuesday or Wednesday.

Minister for Defence Khawaja Muhammad Asif, while participating in a TV show, said the appointment of the army chief was a legal obligation. The final decision rests with the Prime Minister who will make it in accordance with law, constitution and set procedure.

In consultation

Earlier, Prime Minister Sharif held telephonic conversation with his chief ally, leader of the Jamiat Ulemae-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) Maulana Fazlur Rehman and conveyed to him his government’s stance on the appointment of the new army chief. Pakistan People’s Party leader, former President Asif Ali Zardari, also supported the government’s move and in a statement said that his party believed in the promotion system for the army and that the top army boss’s appointment would be made by the Prime Minister as per the Constitution.

President Dr Arif Alvi, meanwhile, conveyed that he would not block or hinder the appointment process of the new army chief as he had no legal authority to do so. During a meeting with the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Senator Ishaq Dar, the president conveyed to him that he would follow Sharif’s advice on the next army chief’s appointment.

The Ministry of Defence will formally initiate the process on Monday and a final decision will be made by Tuesday or Wednesday.