Power - Game, Set, Match

Andleeb Abbas

Come November. There was super hit movie “Come September” in the 60s. This movie was about a
rich billionaire and his controversial life manifested by his yearly sojourns in Italy every year in
September. In Pakistan it is Come November but not each year, after every three years. The
speculation starts a year before. The dilemma of “ to give or not to give” starts when the
government is in a tight corner. On paper these are the business as usual appointments of the army
chief in Pakistan. This year it has assumed a new dimension. That dimension is that the givers and
takers are all under various pressures and are probably still wanting to yet not wanting to give and
take. Stakes are so high that the “take” element may also include taking lives.

Why is there so much talk and tension around this appointment? In other democratic countries this
process is a normal process that hardly gets noticed except for the day of the appointment. In
Pakistan this matters more than the appointment of the President or the Prime minister. The reason
being that it is the most powerful position in the country. Legislatively it may just be another key
appointment but politically it is “thee” appointment. Academically COAS is the senior most
appointment in the Pakistan Armed Forces who is a member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee in
a separate capacity, usually consulting with the Chairman joint chiefs to act as a military adviser to
the Prime Minister and its civilian government in the line of defending the land borders of the
country. That is where the academic separates itself from the realistic. The COAS due to tradition
and history does much more than defending the borders of the country. This “out of the syllabus”
duties and “domain extensions” are due to:

1. The Organized Autocracy Vs the DisOrganized Democracy-The armed forces as an

institution is a great example of disciplined execution. They have a system that is exemplary
and keeps on operating regardless of the situation. The Political forces on the other hand are
chaotic, disorganized and changeable according to situation. When the democratic forces
come into power they are by nature more slow in execution. Democracy requires
consultation and consensus making which means delay, changes, abdication or many other
issues that are not faced by armed forces or the private factor. Having said that, the
atrocious governance by the governments has created this dismal perception that
democratic governments are inefficient, corrupt and unable to deliver. This creates a
comparison that the armed forces are the saviours. Take the example of floods in karachi
last year. After ruling Sindh for 15 years the Sindh government was unable to clean the
canals that were blocked and caused urban flooding. Finally the army had to be called to do
that job. This is a reflection of the growing role of the military in a country where for a
decade terrorism, climate change and corona has made it a crisis center. In every major task
force formed to deal with these crisis due to lack of planning and execution by the
government, a military man is seated to deal with the mess the politicians have created. This
history and traditional perception in the public has given more and more power to the forces
to extend their domain. This extension of domain used to be criticized but not really
vocalized the way it is being presently. That is why most army chiefs historically have had a
power struggle with the ruling prime ministers. Their contention was that actually they are
the ones running the government. However when the domains are limitless then they are
bound to raise questions.

2. The “Know your secrets” Network-Information is power. Intelligence is a deal. Files are
negotiation. The intelligence system of the government is based on the IB or the intelligence
bureau. But the real information network that traces every call, every word, every
transaction you make lies with ISI i.e inter services intelligence of the military. Track, trace
 and truncate anti state activities requires sophisticated system of interrupting the most
secret of conversations. Unfortunately these were not just used for external but for internal
tapping and tracking too. This made the politicians an easy target. The fact that the
politicians knew and complained about it yet kept on doing the “dirty secret work” is their
flaw and folly. The recent audio leaks on the meetings held in PM office is a prime example
of this “extended domain”. This information became a bases for many PM changes in the
past. The public accepted those as they also saw these politicians as party to the crime. It is
only the present no confidence movement that has made the public realize that this
extension of authority is not for the public good but for their own good.

3. The Government infiltration-Perhaps the most visible domain extension is the infiltration of
the military sponsored placements in key institutions. There are some direct and some
indirect placements. The direct institutions involve all types. From WAPDA to PCB, many an
institution in the past have been occupied by their veterans. In the indirect category main
political institutions like NAB, ECP, FIA etc and many ambassadorial posts are given to
civilians who are on their service roll. This placement on key positions makes them pull the
strings on deciding whom to nail and whom to let scot free. The present government has
60% of its cabinet involved in cases and since the heads of the major investigative and
accountability institutions are indirectly reporting to their sponsors almost all references are
being dismissed. This has been done in a crass hurry and has thus made PTI’s claim of NRO2
being given look true.

4. The International Facilitation-Traditionally the main area of interest for military has been
foreign policy. Some of it is a natural extension as defence matters affect international
relations, trade etc. In Pakistan’s case it is almost understood that every foreign policy
decision will be made not just in consultation but with the consent of the Chief and his main
men. The army chief plays a main role in facilitating loans and concessions etc. The US Aid to
fight terrorism was mainly military aid and thus the American tilt in our policy was very
apparent. It was this difference of approach between the previous PM and the COAS over
Russian and Chinese VS American tilt that started a whole series of differences that ended in
a vote of no confidence against the then PM.

This November has started ominously. The heat is on. The Long march has got into the skins
of the “opposition”. So much so that the threats of stopping it at all costs has assumed a
reality status. The shoot out that injured Imran khan and 14 others on the container is a sad
reflection of how power can destroy and absolute power can destroy absolutely. Apparently
the rituals go on. There are the usual statements by the present COAS of not wanting a third
extension and there are many more speculations saying he will. The matter deserves a
debate deeper than that. It should be about extension of term. It should be about extension
of role. It should be about extension of domain. It is about encroachment of political zones.
It is about jurisdiction intervention. These are matters being overtly discussed by PTI and
covertly by media. The power countdown begins, but so should the process of limiting the
transgressions into civilian executive domains.

The writer is a columnist, consultant, coach, and an analyst and can be reached at
andleeb.abbas1@gmail,com. She tweets at @AndleebAbbas