File photo of PTI Chairman Imran Khan
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan on Monday appeared to suggest he was amenable to extending the tenure of incumbent Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Gen. Qamar Javed Bajwa until after early elections, when a new government can pick his successor.
In an interview with private broadcaster Dunya News, the ousted prime minister reiterated that he wanted the next Army chief to be selected on merit, adding the leadership of the ruling coalition was not suitable to have a say in the appointment process. “Neither [PPP leader] Asif Ali Zardari nor [PMLN leader] Nawaz Sharif is qualified for taking this decision on merit,” he claimed.
He said if the incumbent government returned to power through free and fair elections, it could choose the Army chief of its choice. To a question by the anchor on how this could happen, as there are only two months in Gen. Bajwa’s tenure and any fresh elections would require three months, Khan said “provisions” could be found to allow this. “My lawyers have told me a provision can be found on this,” he said. To further probing on whether this meant he supported Gen. Bajwa’s extension, Khan refused to directly answer and merely said this was something for constitutional experts and lawyers to determine.
Earlier this month, Khan triggered controversy after claiming during a public address in Faisalabad that the incumbent government was trying to appoint a “favorite” Army chief to hide its corruption, adding that a “strong, patriotic” Army chief would not spare them. The remarks had provoked the military’s media wing to issue a rejoinder claiming the Army leadership was “aghast” over them and urging against politicizing the appointment process.
With the incumbent Army chief’s retirement looming in November, the statement had raised eyebrows among analysts, who had warned it risked making controversial all nominees for the slot of Chief of Army Staff.
In a statement posted on Twitter, PTI leader Shireen Mazari alleged Khan had been misquoted and slammed the anchor for trying to assert his own agenda. However, also on Twitter, PTI leader Chaudhry Fawad Hussain said Khan had presented a “formula” for the country’s political future that needed to be advanced. “Status quo can be maintained,” he said, referring to the Army chief’s tenure.
In his interview, the ousted prime minister also stepped back from his earlier stance of never sitting down with “crooks” in government, saying he was ready to hold talks with the coalition government on early elections. “The coalition parties are scared of losing the next general elections,” he said, adding that nations only progress if they take decisions on merit.
Contempt of court
Discussing the Islamabad High Court (IHC)’s decision to indict him in contempt of court proceedings on Sept. 22, Khan claimed he might have apologized if the five-member bench hearing the case had allowed him to personally address them. Regretting if anything he said were misinterpreted, he said he was ready to take back what he said about additional sessions judge Zeba Chaudhry. “I could have said what they wanted if they had allowed me to speak,” he claimed.
Throughout his interview, the PTI chief maintained that the current government did not have the mandate or legitimacy to tackle the problems facing the country, adding political stability was the only path to economic stability. “The economy is shrinking while unemployment is rising,” he claimed, adding further price hikes loomed in future in accordance with the deal inked between the government and the International Monetary Fund.
“[They] signed the IMF program and increased the cost of petrol and electricity,” he said. “Given where they are going, I’m afraid the government has no solution,” he said, warning no one would be able to tackle the economy if political instability persisted.
Floods
On the floods that have left a third of Pakistan underwater, the ousted prime minister said their economic fallout would be seen during the winter season. “Rice fields have not been cultivated due to stagnant flood water in Sindh,” he said, adding Sindh’s major issue was the lack of a drainage system. “Homes are constructed on nullahs in Karachi,” he said while stressing the need for devising a proper drainage plan to deal with the issue. He did not comment on the buildings that collapsed in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa—ruled by the PTI—that were built on riverbanks.
Acknowledging that any government in power faced a “mountain of problems,” Khan claimed the PTI would ensure political stability if it were re-elected. “I am not rushing towards elections for personal interests,” he claimed, as he reiterated his attacks on the Election Commission of Pakistan, who he described as biased.
To a question, the PTI chief said he was not anti-America and admitted he had met former U.S. diplomat Robin Rafael at his Bani Gala residence in Islamabad. “I’ve known Robin Rafael for a long time. She is not associated with the government, but is working with a think tank,” he said.