All Gathered Info, Review, Dramatic Conflict on a non-political issue Of Selection Of COAS Of Pakistan.
ISLAMABAD: It’s almost now time to take what is likely one of the most challenging decisions of its term to choose who will be the next chief of Pakistan’s Army.
In accordance with Article 243 (3) in the Constitution of Pakistan, the president selects the services of chiefs on the advice of the premier. Schedule V-A to the Rules of Business, which details the types of cases that must be submitted prior to being presented for approval, states the following “the appointment of, an above the rank of, lieutenant-general in the army and equivalent ranks in the other Defence Services will be made by the prime minister in consultation with the president”.
The Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) leader who is a member of the federal cabinet said in the background talks that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif may begin discussions about the appointment by September’s end and then possibly make a final decision on the selection of upcoming Army Chief before the middle of September.
There is a general consensus that he’ll consult his allies from the coalition in power before making an official decision. An insider from the Pakistan Peoples Party, however, it was suggested that the party might not be interested in getting involved since It is in the hands of the PM to make the final decision on the selection of the upcoming army chief.
As per Constitutional Article 243(3) in the Constitution, The president nominates the Army Chiefs of the services upon the advice of the Prime Minister……
Four of the six top Lt-Gens at the time of Current COAS Qamar Javed
Bajwa’s retirement will be from the same batch, while a fifth is senior to almost the entire lot.
Schedule V-A in the Rules of Business, which defines the types of cases that must be submitted in the presence of the premier for approval, stipulates that “[…] the appointment of, and over the rank of lieutenant general in the Army and the equivalent rank in the different Defence Services will be made by the prime minister after the concert with the president.”
The way in the way this process is carried out however isn’t clear in the rules books. There are no specific criteria established for evaluating candidates to be elevated, besides the vague requirement that the general who is chosen for the job of leading an army must be a commander of a corps.
The practice follows the General Headquarters (GHQ) sends a list of four to five lieutenant-generals with the highest rank and their personnel dossiers to the Ministry of Defence, which forwards the information directly to the Prime Minister, who will choose the one he thinks is most appropriate for the position.
The defense ministry could review the names before presenting them to the prime minister. However, it isn’t often the case and the department acts as an office for the post.
The generals’ credentials are discussed at either the Cabinet or in the Prime Minister’s Office or within the cabinet. The decision is based on the prime minister’s “informal consultative with the incoming army chief, his own views and discussions with his most trusted advisors.
Keen observers also speak of an “institutional recommendation” which is a recommendation to the Prime Minister regarding the candidate of a certain choice. But, at the very least, two defense secretary’s former colleagues have denied this assertion. They say it’s only the army chief who is stepping down who is in an ‘informal meeting of the Prime Minister who has personal input into whom he thinks will succeed him.
Of the 10 army commanders that the nation has had in past since 1972, only five of them were chosen by the incumbent’s older brother Mian Nawaz Sharif, in two separate terms as the prime minister. The older Sharif was frequently accused of appointing officials who he considered to be an “apna banda” (his man). However, none of the appointments went well for him.
The incident has apparently caused Sharifs Sharifs with the conviction that they’ll never achieve their goal. Certain PML-N leaders have said in interviews with a background that they have somewhat taken the decision that instead of falling into the temptation to find an ideal candidate instead, they will make an appointment based on their seniority themselves.
“Then, no matter how things turn out, we will at least be content that no personal choices were involved,” one political party leader said.
A different faction within the party believes that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif could simply accept the advice of the chief.
Transitioning out
The Chief of the Army Staff (COAS) Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa has been scheduled to retire at the end of the weeks of November. The appointment of the army chief was supposed to last for three years, however, Gen Bajwa was awarded an additional term of three years in 2019, following an incident of political tension. The then-prime minister Imran Khan had given him an extension in August, however, it was the Supreme Court later demanded legislation concerning the re-appointment of chiefs of the service.
The Parliament was in compliance in January 2020 and allowed the premier to increase the terms of chiefs of services at his sole discretion. However, the law had set a 64-year age limit as the minimum age that a service chief has to retire.
COAS Gen Bajwa, still 61 and 61, is therefore qualified for a new period. This has resulted in some speculation suggesting that the current incumbent could be looking for or interested in an extension. According to a military source, Gen Bajwa has told his colleagues that he is retiring in November. Inter-Services Public Relations, to confirm that the general will indeed retire.
The chief of the army isn’t the only post with four stars that are set to be open in November. The Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee (CJCSC) Gen Nadeem Raza will be going into retirement at the same time. The simultaneous appointment of two generals with four stars will give the government some room to select the commander of the army without creating too much controversy within the upper ranks.
It is interesting to note that Four of the six senior lieutenant generals in the period when Gen Bajwa’s resignation was announced come as part of the same cohort. The degree of seniority for this group is determined by a technical method (i.e., by the PA number they were assigned during their time during PMA PMA as well as could or might not have importance in the event that it comes to the next CJCSC and COAS are selected. The other two are, however of them, one is the most senior to almost all the other lot, while the second one is junior.
Lt-Gen Asim Munir
When the final decision on who will be to the post of CJCSC as well as COAS is taken, Lieutenant-General Asim Munir will be the most senior of the applicants. Even though he was promoted to the position of two-star general in September of 2018 He has appointed the COAS just two months after.
In the end, his four-year stint as Lt-Gen will come to an end on the 27th of November at the same time that CJCSC and COAS who are incumbents of CJCSC as well as the COAS will wear their army uniforms. Because the suggestions and the final decisions regarding the selection of the two generals with four stars will be taken sooner the decision will fall to Gen Bajwa to decide if his name should be included and then for the premier to decide on the final decision. Gen Bajwa is a top officer, but due to the technical issues involved, he might remain the dark horse of the proverbial.
Lt-Gen Munir joined the military through Lt-Gen Munir joined the service through Officers Training School (OTS) program in Mangla and was then commissioned in the Frontier Force Regiment. He has been a loyal advisor to the current COAS since he took over command of troops within the Force Command Northern Areas as a brigadier in the Army under Gen Bajwa who was at the time Commanding X Corps.
He was appointed DG Military Intelligence in early 2017 and, in October, the year following was made chief of the ISI. ISI chief. But his time as the most senior intelligence officer proved to be the most brief since the lieutenant-general replaced him with Lt-Gen Faiz Hashim within eight months at the request of the then PM Imran Khan. He was appointed as Gujranwala Corps commander in the Gujranwala Corps, a post in which he served for two years before being transferred to the GHQ as Quartermaster General.
Lt-Gen Azhar Abbas
Lt-Gen Abbas is one of the most experienced in Indian issues of the current brass. At present, he’s the chief of the general staff (CGS) and is in charge of the army under the direct supervision of both intelligence and operations directorates within GHQ.
In the past, he was the commander of the Rawalpindi-based, but Kashmir-centric and important politically X Corps, which indicates that he has the full confidence of the current army chief. In his tenure as the commander of X Corps that the Indian and Pakistani armies reached a consensus regarding respect for the ceasefire accord along the LOC as well as the Lt-Gen Abbas’s task was to ensure that the agreement was followed.
Prior to that, Lieutenant-General Abbas was the commander at his Infantry School, Quetta. The officer was personal to the staff of former army chief Gen Raheel Sharif, which gave him an insider’s insight into the process of decision-making at the highest levels. The time also gave him the opportunity to communicate with the PML-N leadership, as well as the top leadership of friendly countries. Then, he was able to command his own 12th Infantry Division based in Murree and from there the division was accountable for Azad Jammu and Kashmir.
Lt-Gen Nauman Mehmood
Being a member of the Baloch Regiment, Lt-Gen Mehmood is the President of the National Defence University. He has also served as the chief instructor at Quetta’s Command and Staff College, Quetta. He was the commander of an infantry division that was based in North Waziristan.
He was appointed director general (Analysis) within the ISI which plays a vital function in the analysis of foreign policies from a national security point of view. This position gave him the chance to work with intelligence agencies from abroad for the ISI.
After his promotion to an officer with three stars in 2019, He was made the inspector-general in the department of Communications & Information Technology, GHQ. In December 2019, he was transferred to Peshawar’s XI Corps. He was in charge of security along the border between Afghanistan and Pakistan and its fencing during a time that the US had withdrawn its forces.
Then, in November of 2021, he transferred control in his XI Corps to Lt-Gen Faiz Hamid.
Lt-Gen Faiz Hamid
Lt-Gen Hamid is also a member of his unit, the Baloch Regiment, and is one of the most discussed contestants for the top job. Current COAS Of Pakistan Gen Bajwa and Lt-Gen Hamid have been known to each other for many years. As a brigadier Lt-Gen Hamid was the chief of staff to the X Corps under Gen Bajwa who was at the time in charge of the entire corps.
When COAS Gen Bajwa was first appointed to his selection as COAS, Lieutenant-General Hamid was a two-star general and was leading one of the divisions in infantry within Pano Aqil, Sindh. Soon after his promotion as army chief, Gen Bajwa posted him as director-general (Counter-Intelligence) at ISI, where he was not only responsible for internal security but also political affairs.
Following his rise to the rank of three stars, He was first appointed adjutant general within the GHQ in April 2019. However, just two months after that, in an unexpected move, he was named DG ISI. In his new position, Lt-Gen Hamid was actively involved in assisting his government in issues such as renegotiating power sector contracts IPPs as well as reforming governance and revitalizing the economy, etc as well as traditional foreign policy issues as well as national security concerns.
In the final stage of his time as director of the ISI, He was the subject of debate among Imran Khan and the COAS since the latter chose to make him the head of the Peshawar Corps, and the former was not ready to let him go. He was eventually transferred to Peshawar in the Peshawar Corps, where he remained for just a few months before being assigned to Bahawalpur Corps. Bahawalpur Corps.
Some political experts believe that it may be challenging, if not impossible, for the PMLN leadership to decide whether to nominate his candidature for the COAS in the coming years. COAS because of the widely-publicized nature of his work being ISI director during the previous government’s term.
Lt-Gen Mohammad Amir
Lt-Gen Amir belongs to the Artillery Regiment and is, at present, commanding the XXX Corps in Gujranwala. He is considered a close confidant of Gen Bajwa. Previously, he was adjutant-general at the GHQ. As major-general, he commanded the 10 Infantry Division stationed in Lahore from 2017-18.
He has also served as director-general of Staff Duties at the COAS Secretariat, giving him considerable experience in both GHQ and command positions. Prior to that, he was military secretary to then President Asif Zardari from 2011-13.
Lt-Gen Sahir Shamshad Mirza
In the current batch, Lieutenant-Gen Mirza is the highest-ranking of the four candidates in this batch. He comes from the Sindh Regiment; the same parent unit of the former CJCSC Gen Nadeem Raza. He has enjoyed a remarkable military career, particularly in management positions in the past seven years. Lieutenant-General Mirza was a star in the role of Director-General of Military Operations (DGMO) in the final 2 years of Gen Raheel Sharif’s presidency.
In his DGMO position, the DGMO was part of Gen Sharif’s team at GHQ and was in charge of the military operations against Tehreek-i Taliban Pakistan (TTP) as well as other militants within North Waziristan. Additionally, he was associated with his participation in the Quadrilateral Coordination Group (QCG) which brokered talks between Afghanistan, Pakistan, China, Afghanistan and Afghanistan, and the United States. In addition, he was part of the Sartaj Aziz-led commission regarding reforms for Gilgit-Baltistan.
After his advancement to the rank of three stars, He was then appointed chief of the general staff, which made him the second most powerful individual in the army, after the COAS. In his new position, the chief of the general staff was involved in key decision-making pertaining to the security of the nation and foreign issues. He also participated with the former Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi in strategic discussions together with Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi in 2021.
In the month of October 2021, he was appointed as the Corps Commandant Rawalpindi so that he could gain operational experience and be qualified for the most prestigious positions.
A source from the military, commenting on his profile stated that he was the obvious candidate for one of the two positions of COAS or CJCSC.
