Courtesy PID
President Arif Alvi on Saturday admitted that former Army chief Gen. (retd.) Qamar Javed Bajwa—accused by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan of triggering his ouster from power—had actually helped the party during elections and in the Senate.
According to a report published in daily The News on Monday, the president acknowledged the ex-Chief of Army Staff’s support of the PTI during a dinner that was attended by journalists, leaders of the business community and foreign diplomats. It said the president had claimed that Khan and Bajwa’s relationship had initially fractured in October 2021 and the gaps had widened in April this year. However, he rejected reports that Khan had ever considered dismissing the former Army chief.
However, as the news of the president’s remarks spread on social media, the President’s Office issued a rebuttal claiming he had not stated that the former Army chief had supported the PTI. “President Arif Alvi has taken notice of the statement wrongly attributed to him about the alleged help extended by former chief of Army staff, Gen. (retd.) Qamar Javed Bajwa, and his team in the Senate, and their help to Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) during the elections also,” read the clarification issued by the media wing of the President’s Office. “The statement has been quoted out of reference to the context and is twisted and self-concocted,” it added.
Alleging that he believed the current military leadership was not entirely “neutral,” The News cited Alvi as claiming the PTI’s government had faced a lot of “interference,” including in the functioning of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB). He claimed he had discussed the issue of the armed forces’ neutrality with the incumbent Army chief, adding that if this were true, politicians needed to take charge. “You [politicians] should create a situation where you don’t run to them [Army],” he was quoted as saying by the publication.
On the prevailing political crisis in the country, he said he had advised the ruling coalition and the PTI to see a middle ground for the date of the next general elections. However, he continued, it was still unclear when polls might take place, adding that Khan should be concerned about whether they could even take place in October next year.
Lamenting that the no institution had played its role effectively in preventing Pakistan from slipping into crises, he recalled that even courts had given verdicts allowing dictators to change the Constitution and cost the country billions. “If you criticize the judiciary, it will reduce the efficacy of the entire judiciary,” he said. “If you criticize the Army, it brings disrepute to them and you don’t want them to get disrepute,” he said, regretting that this principle was often stretched, preventing people from any criticism.