Sharif to Sharif: Let Musharraf leave!

By
Shahzada Anees Waqar
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12
173
  • COAS send ‘quite message’ to PM asking him to allow former president to leave country in ‘larger interest of nation’
  • Nawaz abruptly abandons PML-N senior leaders’ meeting on Musharraf to meet COAS
  • Majority of PML-N leaders oppose removing Musharraf’s name from ECL

A ‘quiet message’ from Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Raheel Sharif made Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif delay a decision on the fate of former dictator General (r) Pervez Musharraf, Pakistan Today has learnt.

After the communiqué made Tuesday, the consultation process with senior leaders of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) was abruptly delayed halfway and it was decided that the premier would have a one-on-one meeting with the army chief to seek his advice over the issue.

Sources privy to the development told Pakistan Today that the army chief had contacted Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, with whom he has a good relationship, and asked him to convey to the prime minister to allow Musharraf to leave the country as soon as possible.

However, the prime minister, the source added, has asked the army chief to visit him and discuss the matter personally. For the same purpose, the prime minister abruptly left the consultation process halfway and delayed the decision till Tuesday night, source said.

“COAS General Raheel Sharif has conveyed to the prime minister that concerns were ‘all time high’ among the khakis about ongoing media trial of General Musharraf, which according to him was ‘badly affecting’ the morale of the armed forces,” the source said, adding that the negative impact was affecting top officers to jawans equally.

The source said that before departing for Prime Minister’s House, General Raheel also met a delegation of some retired army officers, among whom former Multan corps commander Lt Gen (r) Shafqat Ahmed was prominent.

“The retired generals asked the army chief to use his influence to give a safe passage to Musharraf as his media trial was badly affecting the morale of the army men. They opined that the ongoing trial of former army chief was a part of a well conceived and well orchestrated plan to demoralise the army which was fighting for the cause of the nation against terrorists in mountains, valleys and cities across country,” the source quoted the retired officers as saying to the army chief.

The source added that though there was no planned meeting of army chief with the prime minister on agenda but the meeting later took place and General Raheel had used his helicopter to go for the surprise and unscheduled meeting with the premier.

“The one-on-one meeting was held briefly before a meeting on national security issues which was followed by the meeting between the prime minister and the chief of army staff,” the source added.

WILL MUSH BE OFF ECL?

Musharraf’s counsel Dr Farogh Nasim has sought removal of Musharraf’s name from the Exit Control List (ECL) for his treatment abroad while the former president also wishes to see his ailing mother in UAE. Moreover, some ‘friendly countries’ are also reportedly backing a safe exit for the retired general.

The Interior Ministry is yet to decide on whether it will remove Musharraf’s name from the ECL giving rise to speculations.

Earlier, the prime minister chaired a meeting of his close aides to discuss whether Muharraf should be allowed to travel abroad.

Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, Defence Minister Khwaja Asif, Information Minister Parvez Rashid, Minister for Planning & Development Ahsan Iqbal, PML-N Secretary General Iqbal Zafar Jhagra, PML-N KP chief Sardar Mehtab Abbasi, Senator Mushahidullah Khan and others were among the PML-N leaders who attended the meeting.

According to a source, majority of the PML-N leaders opposed removing Musharraf’s name from the ECL citing that punishing the former military ruler would ensure that there would be no future violations of the constitution. PML-N leaders said allowing Musharraf to leave the country would be construed as a deal and it would be difficult for the government to defend this move.

The source added that a recommendation was also put forward which called for Musharraf’s name to be removed from the ECL if he apologises to the nation.

The special court indicted Musharraf in the high-treason trial Monday and dismissed his petitions seeking permission to travel abroad. In its order the special court stated that Musharraf’s name had been placed by the government on the ECL and only the government could remove it.

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12 COMMENTS

  1. I am shocked and suprised that Musharraf has soo much power while he's not even in office. Raheel Sharif being the hand picked COAS, it is in fact shocking. The General Corps of Pakistan are corrupt to their core for defending the COAS.

    • What is shocking about it? Was not Musharraf the hand picked choice of Nawaz? I wish this stage had never come. Who created this drama by his ill advised adventure? It was Nawaz. Now again as is his perennial habit he is try stamp his authority on the army . History tends to repeat itself in Pakistan. There are other ways of showing authority—by being magnanimous. Musharraf showed mercy, how about returning the favour otherwise the bells will toll again sooner than later.I would not call Generals corrupt.

  2. Musharaf is a true patriot and done so much for Pakistan. In my view, Nawaz Sharif should be hanged for treason by negotiating with the Taliban whom have killed many 50,000 Pakistan’s and still continue to!

  3. Parvez Musharraf's extended stay at AFIC should have been enough to convince anyone with a functioning brain that the armed forces were behind him but even if there were any doubts lingering in the minds of slow or no-learners, these should now have been removed with the reported advice of army chief and the DG ISI.
    And with the special courts verdict, there is no legal hitch to Pervez Musharraf proceeding abroad to see his ailing, elderly mother and / or to get medical treatment of his choice, except his name being on the Exit Control List, where the government placed it and it alone has the authority to remove it, as stated clearly by the special court and legal experts.
    Nawaz Sharif has sought the advice, for what it is worth, of his inner circle on the issue, and the majority opinion seems to be not to let Pervez Musharraf go and knowing the crowd, it is no surprise because being yea-sayers, they would only advise what they thought was the boss's desire, and weaklings also have a tendency to come down hard on others when they get a chance to do that, especially when they consider the target to be a soft one.
    Knowing Nawaz Sharif, he would like to exact his revenge for what he suffered, and one can't really blame him for it, though he invited the calamity himself and a leader is supposed to rise above petty feelings and work in the best interest of the country. However, he does not have the courage to take the decision on his own and wants to share the responsibility with others, and has expressed a desire to consult other parties as well. Also his dictatorial mindset, which was manifested in his desire to become Ameer-ul-Momineen earlier, is also forcing him to try to keep the armed forces 'under his thumb.' Who knows, with his specially-created third term due to expire in four years time, he might be working on some future plans.
    Strictly speaking, in a democratic setup, civilian leaders should be in overall control, with the armed forces acting on their orders and answerable to them, but we hardly had democracy in our country ever, and both the civilian leaders and military dictators have played their part in bringing the country to the sorry state it is in. However, in Pakistan, the armed forces personnel still enjoy widespread respect because of the sacrifices given by them, and for coming to the rescue of people in times of natural and man-made disasters, doing their job well as compared to the civilian government officials who specialize in corruption and not much else and turn even peoples' abject misery into an 'opportunity' for themselves. In such circumstances, people would not trust civilian leaders to have absolute authority and would feel comfortable if the armed forces helped maintain a certain balance.
    In the circumstances of present-day Pakistan, it would be wise for Nawaz Sharif to accept a certain role for the armed forces and let Pervez Musharraf go. If he really has to get tough with someone, these should be militants and terrorists with whom he seems to be following a policy of appeasement instead.
    Karachi

  4. Excellent comment by Mr Hashmi. It should not be difficult for someone with even half a brian cell to see that the best course would be to allow Musharraf to go to see his ailing mother. But whatever decision is taken, there will be politicial fallouts for it and the problem is finding someone who will take the political responsibility for these. There, as Hamlet said, is the rub.

  6. Thanks to the vindictive and politicised nature of the Pakistani Judiciary and PML-N regime’s never ending thirst for revenge, the international community is laughing and ridiculing the Pakistani Judicial system. British Pakistanis, along with the international community, are deeply troubled by the unfair and unjust treatment being meted out to the former President of Pakistan, the honourable Pervez Musharraf, by the Sharif regime and the overly biased Pakistani Judiciary.

  8. We Pakistanis deserve rulers like Nawaz and his men. Professionally I give lecture to youth on topics like hope, positive thinking etc but the reality is that I have lost my own hope for the country. We do not deserve honest and competent leaders who could take this unfortunate country a little forward. I see anarchy everywhere – in media, religion, among rulers, opposition, judiciary- everywhere. In my view the media has really given unrepairable damage to this country. PAKISTAN KA KHUDA HI HAFIZ

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