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Sharpening Political Divides
Among Military Leadership
Civilian
thinkers, writers, columnists, newspaper editors and politicians
have been warning Pakistan’s military leadership throughout
since Pakistani generals started poking their noses in
Pakistan’s political affairs that their involvement in politics
will eventually start dividing military leadership along
political lines and destroy the inner fabric of armed forces of
Pakistan.
It is so, because if military’s beast has its
nature, politics’ beast also has its own nature. Military needs
unity of command, as general Musharraf used to say in his early
days in Pakistani politics, whereas, politics deals with social,
cultural and political contradictions. It brings closer the like
mind forces together and provides enough of space for opponent
forces to breathe and survive.
Pakistan endured the result of Pakistani
generals’ involvement in the political affairs of the country.
An army broken with inner fabric could not defend Pakistan and
also it could not save itself from an outside enemy.
Once again, general Musharraf has created
those divisions among the rank and file of the armed forces of
Pakistan. The news of sharp political, ethnic and ideological
divisions among military leadership is pouring out and
Pakistan’s external enemies are paying close attention to those
news.
If general Musharraf remained in charge of
Armed forces of Pakistan any longer, the danger is military will
collapse because of its internal contradictions.
It is easy to boast, like general Musharraf
does quite often, that army is one and it is hundred percent
with me or behind me. General knows it well and Pakistan’s
military leadership also knows it that there are sharp division
among military’s rank and file and these divisions are getting
sharper under general Musharraf.
What is happening inside Pakistan army is the
natural result of the actions of few politically motivated
generals.
Any military under civil authority can live
and perform its functions even under political leadership’s
biased decisions about military matters. Some people in uniform
may get disgruntled or show dismay over civil authority’s biased
decisions, but they handle those decisions considering civilian
authority an impartial arbitrator.
When a general takes over political power and
he takes decisions which are not according to the rules and
regulations of the armed forces institution, he reflexes strong
ripples throughout the institution.
That is what it happened under Ayub and Yahya
Khan and Pakistan and armed forces of Pakistan suffered great
losses.
That is what it is happening again under
General Musharraf. Since Musharraf is the worst of all his
predecessors who illegally took over Pakistan, he is generating
equally worst controversies within armed forces of Pakistan.
Better armed forces of Pakistan force general
Musharraf to relinquish power and save itself as an institution
or get ready to face dire consequences of generals Musharraf’s
stupid actions.
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