Army, executive on same page: PM

With the tension over the “memogate” scandal apparently defused, Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani on Saturday said there was no confrontation between the army and executive and both were on the same page on the memo issue.
Talking to a select group of journalists, the PM said the army and judiciary were “pro-democracy” and both “did not want to derail the democratic process”. He said he had succeeded in getting President Asif Ali Zardari and army chief General Ashfaq Kayani closer, stating that both Zardari and Kayani had a telephonic chat on Friday night during his meeting with Kayani. Gilani spoke candidly on almost all aspects of the country’s complex politics and economic situation and tried to clear the air on the stand-off between the army and government and tension with the judiciary, besides making some specific attacks on Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI), which is rapidly gaining popularity.
Surprisingly for the first time, Gilani hit out at Imran Khan’s party, calling it old wine in a new bottle, and contributed forty percent of his speech to those politicians, who he said were rejected by the people and comrades of dictators and were now joining Imran.
During his one-and-a-half-hour long conversation, he came down hard on the media for “uselessly” creating hype over the memo issue, claiming that the memo held no ground following the affidavit by General James Jones, the retired marine corps officer of the US. “When most of the journalists even don’t know the exact meaning of the memo, why do they make an issue out of it?” he asserted. Gilani said that during his meeting with Gen Kayani on Friday, President Zardari called him and asked what he was doing. “I told the president that I was in a meeting with the army chief. He asked me to convey his good wishes to Kayani. When I told Gen Kayani, he said that wanted to talk to the president. Later they spoke and I don’t know about the content of their talk,” the PM said. Asked if the president would attend the death anniversary of Benazir Bhutto in Naudero on December 27, Gilani said, “Who can stop him if the doctors allow him?”

Commenting on the government’s point of view on the Supreme Court’s jurisdiction in the memo case, Gilani said it was a legal matter, which had to be resolved by the court. “Look, the matter is in court and the court has to resolve it. We have our right to state that the court has no jurisdiction over it but this should not be taken as a conflict. Whatever decision the court takes, we will respect it,” he said.
Asked whether his government would give extension to the ISI DG in wake of the recent happenings, Gilani said, “I will cross that bridge when I come to it”. General Pasha’s term is set to expire in a few months.
The premier said the army had sent replies to the SC through the Defence Ministry, which was official route for sending such documents. “I think everything should be routed through the proper channel. As the army and ISI are part of the government, its replies had to be sent through the Defence Ministry and this procedure was duly followed,” he added.
Asked had the ISI DG sought his permission before meeting Arab leaders for allegedly seeking support for toppling the incumbent government, Gilani said, “Mansoor Ijaz is a liar.”
The PM also brushed aside the impression of an executive-judiciary conflict. He said the apex court’s decision on memo would be implemented. Responding to another query, Gilani said the government would assist the parliamentary committee on national security and the commission formed by the apex court for the memo probe. “We are not running. We are also concerned about national security,” Gilani said.
Asked if the national security committee had tools to investigate into the memo issue, Gilani said the government would fully assist the committee on memo issue.
“I have to give full assistance to the committee or the commission,” he said, adding that he had always been at the forefront on the issue of national security and defended the country’s institutions, including the army and ISI.
“I am the government, I am responsible,” Gilani said, adding, “What do you want to take out from a piece of paper (memo)” Let the process complete … the inquiry is underway,” Gilani said in response to a volley of questions.
He said the army chief and ISI DG were working under the constitution and under his government’s ambit. The prime minister also asserted that all institutions should show unity to face challenges faced by the country.
He rejected the impression that former ambassador to US Hussain Haqqani had attended the parliamentary party meeting of the PPP on Friday.
Criticising the media for blindly following the allegations levelled by Mansoor Ijaz, Gilani said he was not a Pakistani and rather was an anti-Pakistan individual.
Gilani also hinted at taking the political leadership into confidence over proposals on the country’s foreign policy, saying, “Once the recommendations are finalised by the committee, I will seek support of political forces on the strategy to deal with the Afghanistan issue and relations with the US.”
Apparently perturbed by the rising popularity of Imran Khan, Gilani tacitly criticised the PTI, calling it an “old wine in a new bottle”.
“Those talking about bringing a change are old wine in new bottles. Opportunists are joining a new party. But let me tell you that in the next elections, no party would have absolute majority and the situation would remain the same as persists today. Those who are calling each other thieves would have to form coalition government after the next election with the same people they are calling thieves today. Such people should realise this fact,” the prime minister said.
He said change would always be possible through a sustainable political process and continuity of elections. “No matter how massive a public meeting Imran Khan holds in Karachi, I challenge him that his party cannot win even a single provincial assembly seat from Karachi.”
“These people, who I call ‘chair-takers’ cannot bring change overnight. Those joining a specific party today had also joined Musharraf. We resisted such temptations and did not seek plea-bargains and rather fought against him. We are committed to an ideology. The PPP is a federal party and those joining the new party have almost been rejected by the masses,” he maintained.
Asked whether he would seek resignations from the army chief, ISI DG and sack the chief justice per the wishes of his party’s MPs, Gilani said one could not gag the voice of any individual but decision-making was to be made by the leadership.
He said his meeting with army chief had dispelled an impression that the army was against Haqqani.
Unlike Babar Awan, the prime minister showed respect towards the PML-N leadership, saying he had a few friends in the opposition and had conveyed his thoughts to the Sharifs.
To a query on his recent meeting with US Ambassador Cameron Munter, Gilani said the ambassador had requested for a meeting and the foreign minister and foreign secretary had assisted him in the meeting.
“During the meeting, Munter sought demands from Pakistan to revive bilateral ties with the US. I told him we also understand the significance of our partnership with the US. I told him that we wanted ties with the US on permanent basis as in the past 60 years, dictators took decisions without public support,” he said.
Reiterating his party’s commitment to creating the Seraiki province, Gilani said the PPP gave recognition and rights to the people of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, Gilgit-Baltistan and smaller provinces and “we will also give recognition to Seraiki people from sitting assemblies before election. PPP is committed to the cause of Seraiki people,” he added.