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Chairman of the opposition Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Imran Khan said that the appointment of next Army Chief, which is due by the end of November, should be deferred for the time being till the new government, after the general elections, makes an appointment on this position.
The former prime minister also said he was ready to hold a dialogue with his political opponents — the ruling parties — on all issues if they are ready for a free and fair elections. He further remarked that he was not anti-America and gave several clues that his confidence building talks with the US were underway.
In a private TV channel interview with anchorperson Kamran Khan yesterday, the opposition party chief indirectly hinted that either present Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa should be given an extension in his services for a short period of time or a legal provision could be searched out that he should continue till the appointment of his successor.
However, Khan avoided directly answering the repeated questions of the anchorperson whether he is asking for the extension in services of incumbent COAS and only said that he did not know about
this and legal experts can tell better about this. “I have been told by lawyers that in the better interest of the country, a provision can be found out that the next government appoints the COAS,” he also said.
Former prime minister Khan said that free and fair elections should be held in the country and even if the present ruling coalition— the Pakistan democratic Movement (PDM)—wins the election, they should carry on and appoint the next Army Chief.
