KARACHI:
Former president Gen (retd) Pervez Musharraf, commenting on recently renewed tensions between state institutions, said these were the pillars of the state and a clash would shake the very foundation of Pakistan.
In an exclusive interview on Express News' To the Point with Shahzeb Khanzada, he refused to comment on the political fallout of the Supreme Court judgement on the Asghar Khan case and the demand to put retired generals on trial for poll rigging and conspiring against people’s mandate.
“We should look at the present situation and plan for the future. The country is confronted with a host of crises; nobody is talking about these, everybody has started digging up graves and looking for skeletons in the closest – for heaven’s sake, think of Pakistan,” the ex-president said.
Musharraf added that the Asghar Khan case was 15 years old,and at that time, a ‘different political culture’ existed and there was ‘a totally different environment’ in which these decisions were taken.
Saying that people should not “get bogged down in the past”, the former dictator said that if they wanted to open up past cases, they should also publish the Hamoodur Rehman Commission Report and fix responsibility for the breakup of East Pakistan, as well as probe Ayub Khan’s takeover and the assassination of prime minister Liaquat Ali Khan.
Regarding the accountability of the army, Musharraf said it has a very strong system of accountability. A naval chief was booked by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB), but cases against the politicians were not framed by the army, he added.
When asked whether he agreed with the decisions of the Supreme Court, the former president had a surprising answer to give: “I think only Almighty Allah is above the Supreme Court, and I accept its decision and would not like to comment on it.”
He said it was ‘very sad’ that the Asghar Khan verdict has led to a blame game.
Regarding the emergency of November 3, 2007, Musharraf said the establishment, the military brass, and the government at that time were taken on board with the decision.
The former president, now living in self-exile, said that if the court decides to put Gen Beg and Durrani on trial, it should be so – but should not give the perception that the action is against the army as an institution. Weakening the army would mean weakening Pakistan, he emphasised.
Musharraf brushed aside Gen Beg’s claims that someone, but not army chief Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, would impose martial law. He also rejected claims that he was behind the creation of the Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal, the religious right-wing alliance that formed the government in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan after the 2002 elections. “Why would we support our opponents?” he asked, asserting that the 2002 polls were fair.
The former dictator claimed that there were only 13 or 14 unaccounted for missing people in Balochistan, and that the rest “go away to fight Jihad in Afghanistan and Kashmir, or take to the hills in Balochistan”. Musharraf said he would ‘definitely’ return to Pakistan.
Published in The Express Tribune, November 11th, 2012.
COMMENTS (47)
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His letting "Bygones be Bygones", brought in Asif Ali Zardari as the President, and the Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces of Pakistan. Since that day Pakistan's reckless decent into chaos has been at a mind boggling speed. Musharaf preaching this is understandable, but any one else supporting this recipe for disaster is hard to digest.
@Noli teng mere: If he was that bad...was Karachi situation that bad, was Baluchistan that bad, was energy situation that bad, was economy that bad, was PIA, Railways, PSM were that bad, was KP that bad ? ask an person on the street & you will get the answers...sitting in the comfort of your home, it is very easy to say what you like but go & talk to the poor people in the street...was there so much corruptions in Gen M period ?
Has the present govt could undo any policy of Americans especially Drones ? it has increased...100 times....
Yes ! he made mistakes & had the guts to accept them, which now a days politicians cannot do it.... I m not his fan, but if you compare the periods between Gen M & today...get answer from the poor people because numbers claimed by the govt are deceiving....
Think from head not heart....we keep on proving ourselves as " an emotional nation "......by the time we realise, it is too late.
@gp65:
If that is the case, politicians who have been named shud also bear the brunt too...
musharraf is the best leader for Pakistan, hopefully he will lead Pakistan again, so much negative propaganda has been spread by the crooked politicians,truth becomes lies,lies become the truth,reading some comments here ,it obviously works on some people.
Musharraf talking about law and courts, how ironic! Please go away and never come back. After bringing the nation so close to destruction with your Kargil misadventure, you forced yourself upon the nation through the power of the gun.
People of Pakistan have been repeatedly scared of dire consequences in this type of incidents. In this particular case, putting a couple of retired general behind bars and barring a few politicians to contest future elections will not have any negative impact on the progress of Pakistan. It will only be a positive step demonstrating the rule of law. Supreme Court took fifteen years to take this decision which should not be wasted. If law is broken there must be a repercussion. When a society has double standards for justice and rule of law it inevitably steers itself on a downhill path.
Cases of corruption can not ignored rest does not effect us and is part of noora kushti excepty splitting of Pakistan. At one time AAZ was considered security hazard but todat thanks to NQ leagues he is President of country.
@Salman: If you let go every criminal in uniform in the country, particularly those who have been responsible for overthrowing elected governments -- the classical Machtergreifung, as Hitler did and brought darkness upon the country and the world -- then future generations of such criminals will be encouraged to commit the same crimes. Musharraf is no angel: he has to be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law under the country's judicial system. He has the luxury to live abroad in opulence (check on his bank accounts in Dubai, London and Switzerland) and make statements about Pakistan, which he has never cared about. If he had been a sincere and honest person, he would not have brought the misery on the country as he did. History teaches us, if we care to learn from it, is that uniformed soldiers should not take the right upon themselves to govern the country. That's the worst thing that can happen to a country's polity, its character, its judicial system and generally its people. It's as bad as - or, if you can make such a comparison - worse than raping an innocent woman. The people have to elect their leaders who should be civilians (if these are militarymen, then they have to throw away their uniforms). Musharraf often pretends to be emulating the example of former Turkish leader Atta Turk. He knows - and we know - that he is nowhere near his Turkish role model. If anything, Musharraf took Pakistan down the road to self-destruction.
@ishrat salim: "look at the rear window & take corrective action…learn from past mistakes & look ahead to make a better future….is this too much to understand ?"
By your logic sir, no criminal should ever be tried or sentenced. The purpose of sentencing is not that the crime can be undone but that future criminals maybe deterred by the consequences.
When NRO was declared null and void ab initio by supreme court the whole country cheered. This means the country does NOT want to let bygones be bygones. The country wants people to be held accountable no matter what their post. One prime minister has already been sent packing. Why then should army leaders not be accountable to laws?
When in doubt blame the victims - last resort of the guilty.
Reproduced from the Editorial in the Dawn
"Publicly, then, the army-led security establishment accused Ms Bhutto’s government of corruption and bad governance, when in private the real reasons for seeking her ouster was because she was seen as a threat to the India-centric security paradigm that viewed domestic politics as merely yet another weakness for India to exploit. When the military both defines the threat and determines the response, the national interest becomes a cudgel against anyone who disagrees with its militarised formulation. That was the problem in 1990, and it still is the problem today."
I may add Gen Baig's reaction that there would be a coup from someone other then Gen.Kayani, if I am convicted lets bring the building down, speaks volumes for the man. Other evidence /documents suggest he had petty personal financial interest and did not necessarily represent the corporate interests of the Armed Forces.
We need Musharraf back . He is the only one besides Imran Khan who can lead Pakistan to bright future again
imran kkan shoulld dissociate from exremist antipakistan jamaat islami as they also took money and had supported dictators.@Zaffar:
imran kkan shoulld dissiciate from exremist antipakistan jamaat islami as they also took money and had supported dictators.@Zaffar:
@Shah: "Are you talking about the same Benazir who wrote a letter to the US president and giving away our nuclear situation….." Point is Musharaff rigged election of 2002, otherwise how could Benazir predict results months before election
Musharraf is trying to protect himself from future prosecution by suggesting let bygones by bygones.
@Salman - "Musharaff was too humble from day one..."
how can I double like this comment. Sir president Musharraf is exactly what pakistan needs...Thank you for making sense again and again....
@sabi:
Are you talking about the same Benazir who wrote a letter to the US president and giving away our nuclear situation.....
Only Musharraf can lead Pakistan at present. Come back please.
Is 'corruption' by politicians including the president not a bygone?
Musharraf saying "Let bygones be bygone" is pure selfishness. His place in Pakistan prison is waiting for him to return! He will not return. So leave him alone & learn from his mistakes which are plenty to keep a generation busy.....
@FaiselH:
look at the rear window & take corrective action...learn from past mistakes & look ahead to make a better future....is this too much to understand ?
Pakistan is stuffed one way or the other! he was one of the many who tried their own medicine instead of having a standarised form of democratic government. LaST HOPE is IK-longlive IK, IK Zindabad.
He was a great made leader
@asim: He was not a born soldier?
Army may be involved in wrong doings but it is the army which protects a country. The better thing today will be to move on and try to fix problems existing right now.
Before asking for something think what will be the outcome? How will the normal public benefit from it?
Musharaff was too humble from day one. He should have hanged few corrupt people in the streets of all major cities, all would have been fine. People of Pakistan are scared of his return thinking that all corrupt people will be tried and hanged. He is the only man who can run the country, rest are all nincompoop.
If bygones will be bygones, the comeons will be comeons. You cannot drive forward without constantly looking into the rear view.
@Qureshi:
Learn from past mistakes & do not repeat it....that is the conclusion.....can anybody change past, NO, but can learn from past mistakes & go forward......
People who live in the past never see the glow of future. Our political leadership lacks vision.....They should bury the past and try to find a way forward.
No one has asked him for his opinion.He was an oppurtunistic person who sent the Judges into detention and enforced a Martial Law. He had the mentality of a "commando" and unfit for politics. The case is being dealt by experts in law and must have an outcome. The way he can help is by giving informatiion on where is the money and who has it?
Why bygones be bygones? Culprits must be punished for derailing democracy.
You fire one Prime Minister from office on contempt charges for not writing a letter, create volatile situation for four years for a letter to reopen a decades old case in which no case was ever proven and then simply say let by gones be by gones.
A crime of the highest order was committed. It cannot be a simple by-gone. Those involved should be tried for high treason and served justiced as per the law.
To all my fellow readers endorsing his by-gones be by-gones stand, would they enlighten me why the same magnamity is not shown to the politicians in general and PPP in particular when you insist on reopening a fifteen year old case in the name of justice?
I dont care what others say. He is a born leader.
@Qureshi: Those who live in the past limit their future.
Musharaf is the only man who talk with rationality and sanity...i think the cases are all politically motivated moves and general public has to get nothing from that.
"Those who don't remember the past are condemned to repeat it"
Mushrraf rightly said, should resolve the current issues, the government is delevering nothing even during the last days and just talikg about Aghar Khan Case. So much is being spent on media campaign, does it make sense?
"He also rejected claims that he was behind the creation of the Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal, the religious right-wing alliance that formed the government in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan after the 2002 elections. “Why would we support our opponents?” he asked, asserting that the 2002 polls were fair." Benazir Bhutto disclosed, few months before 2002 elections, that Musharaf has made arrangements with mullahs to give them governments in KP and Baluchistan.We all kow that she was a politicians and not divine person to know about future.Certainly Musharaf secret plan was leaked out to Benazir.And he says "our opponents" what a joke since when is mullah opponent of military establishment?.This 'opponent' very conviniently signed LFO for Musharaf. He says think of Pakistan-Bravo! You also thought of Pakistan and as a result we have an unending chain of suicide bombings.You also used to say 'I'm commando I'm not afraid of anybody (Main darta varta nahin hon),So sir; what is this self exile?,
only Musharaff is most practical sincere and intelligent person who understand Pakistan, he should be leading us.
Thats true let bygone be bygones. There must be no pick and choose of the past events if they want to go in past than they should start from 1947. Pakistan needs to move forward and let the election takes place on schedule.Only a genuinely elected government will make a better future.
no copmments