— PM to meet outgoing army chief, ruling coalition members tomorrow to discuss appointment
ISLAMABAD: The army is set to get a new supremo as the office of the prime minister has received, through the Ministry of Defence, the much-anticipated list of senior-most generals to choose from, it confirmed on Wednesday.
Shehbaz Sharif has “received the summary with a panel of names” for the appointment of army chief and chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee (JCSC), Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) tweeted.
“The prime minister will take a decision on the appointments as per the laid down procedure.”
The PM Office has received the summary from the Ministry of Defence with a panel of names for the appointment of Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee and Chief of the Army Staff. The Prime Minister will take a decision on the appointments as per the laid down procedure.
— Prime Minister’s Office (@PakPMO) November 23, 2022
Although the tweet did not identify which six names have been recommended, it’s understood the list contains the names of lieutenant-generals Asim Munir, Sahir Shamshad Mirza, Azhar Abbas, Nauman Mehmood, Faiz Hameed, and Muhammad Aamer.
While one of the men will enter the shoes of Gen. Qamar Javed Bajwa, the outgoing army chief, the other will chair the JCSC.
Khawaja Muhammad Asif, the minister for defence, confirmed the same late last night, tweeting the summary had been forwarded to Sharif’s office by his ministry. “The rest of the steps will be completed soon,” he added.
سمری وزارت دفاع سے وزیراعظم آفس میں موصول ھو گئ. انشاءاللہ باقی مراحل بھی جلد طے ھو جائیں گے..
— Khawaja M. Asif (@KhawajaMAsif) November 22, 2022
Wednesday’s confirmation comes hours after the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) announced General Headquarters (GHQ) had dispatched the panel of names to the defence ministry. The brief statement came after several members of the ruling coalition, including the minister for information, spent the day denying the impression the summary had been received by Sharif’s office.
GHQ has forwarded the summary for Selection of CJCSC and COAS, containing names of 6 senior most Lt Gens to MoD.
— DG ISPR (@OfficialDGISPR) November 22, 2022
Only on rare occasions has the baton been passed to someone outside the top four most senior officers in an army that, with just under a million personnel in 2019, was the sixth largest in the world.
An army chief’s tenure is for three years, but they often obtain extensions, as did Gen. Bajwa in 2019.
Sharif is also expected to hold a consultation with Gen. Bajwa on Thursday on the appointment of his successor. It is a convention the prime minister holds this discussion with the outgoing chief, however, it is described as an “informal consultation”.
A special meeting of the federal cabinet has also been convened for the same day to deliberate on the matter. The administration had earlier planned to complete the process by Friday.
According to Article 243-3 of the Constitution, the president appoints all service chiefs on the recommendation of the prime minister who may consult his aides but he solely has the power to make the appointment.
The appointment of chiefs of the navy and air force goes unnoticed but it is not the case with the nomination of the army chief. The guessing game starts months before the end of the tenure of the incumbent.
Once Sharif approves the names for the two offices, the list will be forwarded to the President’s Secretariat for ratification. Following his approval, it will be sent back to the PMO for a formal announcement.
With the current army chief, Gen. Bajwa, set to retire on November 29, the appointment of his successor has prompted a new set of challenges, especially amidst an economic crisis and climate catastrophe.
Pakistan is in the midst of another bout of political uncertainty as Imran Khan, the former prime minister, has led country-wide protests in an attempt to force his successor, Shehbaz Sharif, into early elections.
The incoming army chief could potentially play a key role in lowering the political temperature as Pakistan attempts to survive the economic and climate crises.
