‘Extending Bajwa’s tenure was a mistake’, says Asad Qaiser

PTI leader and former National Assembly speaker Asad Qaiser has said that PTI’s decision to extend the tenure of ex-chief of army staff retired Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa in 2019 was a “mistake”, admitting the party regrets the decision.

Qaiser — who also served as the custodian of the lower house of parliament during the PTI’s tenure — was the center of the weeks-long tussle that ended with the ouster of former premier Imran Khan as the prime minister through a no-confidence vote in April.

“Everyone [in the party ranks] are realizing that it was a mistake to grant him (Bajwa) an extension,” Qaiser said in an interview with Dawn News.

When asked about background discussions leading to the decision, Qaiser responded: “It was the wrong decision, no matter why or how it was taken.”

He, however, added that it was a “collective decision” of all political parties to extend the tenure of the then-army chief. “The political parties have become basically dynastic parties with no roots among the masses,” he said.

Qaiser said his party was prepared for dialogue “given that elections constitute a key part of the agenda” in response to Imran’s conditional offer for talks with the government.

He also complained about Faisal Vawda, alleging that he received everything except for getting promoted to Imran’s job.

“But he didn’t act morally,” the former NA speaker said.