Islamabad (TIP): Pakistan’s former spy master and senior-most Lt General AsimMunir was named as the new Army Chief by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on November 24, ending speculation over the most powerful position in the coup-prone nation, where the military wields considerable power in matters of security and foreign policy.

Lt Gen Munir has served as chief of two most powerful intelligence agencies—the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and the Military Intelligence (MI) — but his stint as the spy chief at the ISI was the shortest ever as he was replaced by Lt Gen Faiz Hamid within eight months on the insistence of then-Prime Minister Imran Khan in 2019.

He would replace Gen QamarJavedBajwa, who retires on November 29 after two consecutive three-year terms. Gen Bajwa, 61, was appointed as the army chief in 2016 for a three-year term. He was given a three-year extension by the Khan government in 2019. Information Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb announced on Twitter that Prime Minister Sharif has named Lt Gen Munir as the new army chief. Lt Gen SahirShamshad Mirza had been picked as the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee (CJCSC). “The summary about (appointments) has been sent to the President,” Marriyum Aurangzeb tweeted. The CJCSC is the highest authority in the hierarchy of the armed forces but the key powers including mobilisation of troops, appointments and transfers lie with the COAS which makes the person holding the post the most powerful in the military.

The powerful Army, which has ruled Pakistan for more than half of its 75-plus years of existence, has hitherto wielded considerable power in matters of security and foreign policy. The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party earlier quoted Imran Khan as saying that “when the summary comes, I and the President of Pakistan will act according to the constitution and laws.” The appointment coincides with a dispute between the military and Imran Khan, who blames the army for playing a role in his ouster in April this year through a no-confidence vote.

Khan’s close aide and former information minister Fawad Chaudhry said on Wednesday that “until we see the conduct of the new army chief, we cannot say anything about it, but the role of the army in politics in the last 6 months is controversial, this role will need to be changed.” Lt Gen Munir is the senior-most general. Although he was promoted to the rank of two-star general in September 2018, he took charge two months later. As a result, his four-year tenure as Lt Gen will end on November 27. But with his appointment as COAS, he would get a three-year extension in the service. (PTI)