By Muhammad Najeeb, IANS
Islamabad : Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf Tuesday paid farewell visits to the headquarters of the armed forces and met senior military officers, a day before he quits as army chief and sheds his uniform to become a civilian leader.
He first went to the General Headquarters in Rawalpindi where he met Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee Gen. Tariq Majeed and Vice Chief of Army Staff Gen. Ashfaq Kiyani, who would be the new Pakistani Army chief succeeding Musharraf Wednesday after a formal meeting of the army’s Corps Commanders.
Musharraf, who has served 43 years in the Pakistan Army, also visited the navy and air force headquarters in Islamabad and was accorded a farewell guard of honour.
Though army chiefs traditionally also visit garrisons in different cities and attend a lunch with soldiers representing all cadres, Musharraf has limited his visits to the headquarters of the armed forces.
“General Kayani will assume command of the Pakistan Army Wednesday and farewell visits by President General Musharraf have started today (Tuesday),” his spokesperson Maj. Gen. Rashid Qureshi said in a statement.
An official said the defence ministry had issued a formal notification of Musharraf’s retirement from the army.
Musharraf, who has been under tremendous pressure from home and abroad, Monday announced that he would finally quit as army chief ahead of the Jan 8 polls but would continue as president in civvies.
The Supreme Court that was purged of unfriendly judges when Musharraf imposed an emergency on Nov 3 has validated his victory in the Oct 6 presidential polls, notification for which was earlier held in abeyance until the Supreme Court gave its verdict in the case.
Musharraf’s announcement about quitting the army chief’s post came a day after his archrival and former prime minister Nawaz Sharif returned to the country with a slogan to rid Pakistan of dictatorship.
It was Sharif who had appointed Musharraf army chief on Oct 7, 1998, superseding five officers. And it was Musharraf who sacked Sharif in October 1999, put him in jail and a year later sent him into forced exile in Saudi Arabia.
“I am back and will get rid of dictatorship,” Sharif announced Sunday after landing in the country. He denied that he came back after a deal with the military dictator. “My return came due to the personal efforts of King Abdullah”.
He also announced that he would boycott the Jan 8 polls unless the emergency was lifted.
Musharraf, the longest serving army chief after former military dictator Gen. Zia-ul Haq who ruled the country for 11 years and also continued as army chief, will be sworn-in president on Thursday.
But his challenges could only be beginning. Political analysts believe that Musharraf as civilian president could be in trouble as most political parties have already rejected him.
Sharif and former prime minister Benazir Bhutto have said that they would not serve under Musharraf as prime minister if he continued as civilian president. He would, however, remain a figurehead – the supreme commander of the armed forces with powers to sack parliament and appoint the service chiefs.