Future army chief would be appointed by the person empowered by the Constitution to do so: Maulana Fazl
LARKANA, Sep 20 (SABAH): Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) President and Ameer Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) Maulana Fazlur Rehman on Tuesday said the future army chief would be appointed by the person empowered by the Constitution to do so — the prime minister — whose pick would be “on merit”.
“The one who is responsible [for appointing the army chief] as per the Constitution will fulfill this task on the basis of merit. Who is he (Imran Khan) to tell the government about who has to do this,” the JUI-F chief said during a press conference in Larkana.
He said the PTI chief could not be allowed to “interfere in any way” in the next army chief’s appointment. “You can cry and scream all you want,” he said.
Questioned on reports of Imran Khan’s meeting with the incumbent army chief, the JUI-F chief said even if there was any such meeting — of which he insisted he had no knowledge — “it means it was fruitless”.
Maulana Fazlur Rehman hit out at Imran for allegedly attacking the country’s institutions and having a “selective approach” towards them — praising them for pro-PTI decisions and criticising them for anti-PTI decisions. “Imran Khan is finished. His politics have come to an end,” he declared.
To being asked about the Punjab government registering cases against federal ministers Javed Latif and Marriyum Aurangzeb and whether that would weaken institutions, Maulana Fazkur Rehman said: “The Punjab government is itself weak and it may be toppled.”
At the rest of his media talk, the JUI-F chief talked about his Sindh visit for flood relief efforts and talked about the need for national unity in such a situation.
Meanwhile later in the day, PTI Chairman Imran Khan claimed that consulting Nawaz Sharif for the appointment of the army chief will be a contravention of the law.
“Crime Minister discussing appt of COAS and any other state matter with convict Nawaz Sharif and ministers declaring they will appoint COAS after consulting Nawaz Sharif are all in contravention not only of the Official Secrets Act (section 5:1) but also of their oaths of office,” he tweeted.
Also on Tuesday, PTI leader Fawad Chaudhry called upon political parties and the “establishment” — a term widely used by politicians to refer to the military — to “rewrite political framework” and develop a consensus on the “rules of the game”.
In a tweet on Tuesday, the former information and broadcasting minister commented on civil-military ties, saying “we must strive for balance” in their relationship. “Power must be transferred to people of Pakistan,” he emphasised.
The PTI leader called out the coalition government saying the “present system has failed Pakistan and we need to look up for fair rules”.