‘Media blitz as important as war on ground’
Army chief lauds role of ISPR as an institution
Army chief Gen Qamar in a group photograph during his visit to the ISPR headquarters in Rawalpindi. PHOTO: APP
ISLAMABAD:
Fighting a battle on the media front has become as important as fighting it out on the actual frontier, said Army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa. He said this while visiting the headquarters of the military’s media wing ISPR in Rawalpindi on Friday.
He lauded the role of the military’s media wing in the modern age “where fighting a battle on the media front has become as important as fighting it out on the actual frontier”.
Gen Qamar was accompanied by the Chief of General Staff Lt Gen Bilal Akbar and Vice Chief of General Staff Maj Gen Azhar Saleh during his visit to the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR).
This was his first visit to the ISPR since he assumed the command of the Army as its 16th Chief, last month.
The outgoing Director General ISPR Lt Gen Asim Salim Bajwa and his successor Major General Asif Ghafoor were also present.
The outgoing DG briefed the Army chief about the role and functions of military’s media wing. According to an official handout, the Army Chief lauded the role of ISPR as an institution.
The ISPR has gained prominence in recent years particularly during the former Army chief General (retd) Raheel Sharif’s tenure.
The ISPR is credited with launching an aggressive media campaign that is thought to have played a key role in making General (retd) Raheel as a larger than life character.
It was under his tenure that ISPR for the first time was headed by a three-star general, a post traditionally filled by a major general.
It is not clear, however, if the new Army Chief would follow the same aggressive media campaign that his predecessor followed. However, Gen Qamar’s visit to the ISPR suggests that he cannot ignore the role of the military’s media wing, although he is not considered as an ‘attention seeker.’
Published in The Express Tribune, December 24th, 2016.
Fighting a battle on the media front has become as important as fighting it out on the actual frontier, said Army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa. He said this while visiting the headquarters of the military’s media wing ISPR in Rawalpindi on Friday.
He lauded the role of the military’s media wing in the modern age “where fighting a battle on the media front has become as important as fighting it out on the actual frontier”.
Gen Qamar was accompanied by the Chief of General Staff Lt Gen Bilal Akbar and Vice Chief of General Staff Maj Gen Azhar Saleh during his visit to the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR).
This was his first visit to the ISPR since he assumed the command of the Army as its 16th Chief, last month.
The outgoing Director General ISPR Lt Gen Asim Salim Bajwa and his successor Major General Asif Ghafoor were also present.
The outgoing DG briefed the Army chief about the role and functions of military’s media wing. According to an official handout, the Army Chief lauded the role of ISPR as an institution.
The ISPR has gained prominence in recent years particularly during the former Army chief General (retd) Raheel Sharif’s tenure.
The ISPR is credited with launching an aggressive media campaign that is thought to have played a key role in making General (retd) Raheel as a larger than life character.
It was under his tenure that ISPR for the first time was headed by a three-star general, a post traditionally filled by a major general.
It is not clear, however, if the new Army Chief would follow the same aggressive media campaign that his predecessor followed. However, Gen Qamar’s visit to the ISPR suggests that he cannot ignore the role of the military’s media wing, although he is not considered as an ‘attention seeker.’
Published in The Express Tribune, December 24th, 2016.