And institution building
Gen Raheel Sharif added to his stature by declaring months ahead of his retirement that he did not believe in extension and would relinquish his post in November this year. With the army playing a dominant role in the country’s polity, conjectures of all sorts begin months before the end of the tenure of an army chief. In the case of Gen Sharif, they started over a year before the date of retirement. The announcement will dismay people like Musharraf who had strongly supported an extension for him. The announcement would put to rest the ongoing speculation. This will also give the political leadership enough time to take a decision about the next army chief.
The argument that was being advanced to support an extension revolved round the idea of continuity. Since Gen Sharif was leading the army in the war against the terrorists, it was argued that with his departure the task might suffer. The PPP government had used the same bogus argument to grant a three-year extension to former COAS Kayani, who like his predecessor Musharraf, did pretty little to contain the terrorists despite the extension. Gen Sharif, who is setting historic precedents by focusing on issues that had been ignored before, would have acted inappropriately by following an example which has not been conducive to institution building. An extension is bound to give birth to heart burning among senior officers who have legitimate expectations of getting the post if the incumbent retires on time.
There is a need to pay attention to institution building rather than depending on individuals. There should be no dearth of good commanders in a professional army to replace Gen Sharif. The decisions taken on important issues were discussed in the corps commanders meetings. There is no reason to believe that his successor would not deal with the existential threat faced by the country with the vigour and resolve of the present COAS. Similarly, the measures taken to punish the black sheep in the forces would also continue.
The issue of COAS retirement is a hot issue all over the press. Most people praised his (Gen Rahil Sharif) decision to retire on due date. Gen (r) Talat Masood commented that his retirement on time would provide and opportunity to the Civilian Government to gain lost space and give confidence to stand on it's own feet rather than depending on GHQ. Gen Kyani was granted extension due to the ongoing Operation in NW which still continues without hope of any early result against militancy in sight. Neither the political stability is in sight. The political parties stand divided and even an isolated party in Sind is looking into the eyes of the Federation. All Generals, as a matter of fact, are trained to Command. Helping the civilian government is their side business. Let us hope for the best.
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