Former Speaker of the National Assembly, Asad Qaiser, has said that the then-Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government’s decision to extend the tenure of ex-chief of army staff (COAS) retired General Qamar Javed Bajwa in 2019 was “wrong”.

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

While making a candid admission that they [PTI] “regret the mistake”, Qaiser said, “Everyone [in the party ranks] is realising that it was a mistake to grant him (Bajwa) an extension.

RELATED STORIES

Gen (r) Bajwa was appointed as the army chief by former prime minister Nawaz Sharif in November 2016. In 2019, then-premier Imran Khan approved an extension in his tenure as COAS for another term — just three months before he was due to retire.