Prime Minister Imran Khan has said that he has not made a decision on Chief of the Army Staff Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa’s tenure extension, stating that it was ‘too soon’ for such deliberations.
“The current year has just started and November is far away. Then why there is worry about extension in the tenure of the army chief,” the prime minister told Dunya TV Islamabad Bureau Chief Khawar Ghumman in an interview.
General Bajwa’s current tenure is expected to run until November 28, 2022.
The prime minister reinforced that his administration had an overwhelmingly positive relationship with the military and said that he enjoyed the support of military leadership.
During the interview, he denied any rumors of possible attempts to remove him from office through a cooperation between the military and Pakistan Muslim League-N (PML-N) but assured he was instead ‘confident’ that he would complete his mandated five years.
In terms of regrets, Imran Khan said that not convicting opposition leaders of corruption, despite available evidence, had been his administration’s biggest frustration. However, he alluded to the ongoing case brought by the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) against PML-N leader Shehbaz Sharif.
The prime minister also lamented the defeat of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) in the recent local government elections in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, but said he remained hopeful that his party would fare better at the polls in Punjab.
