ISI Takes Over GHQ

In the TFT editorial “ISI has taken over GHQ“ Najam Sethi in his immense wisdom says, "intelligence services must consciously be kept at arms length from GHQ because "field commanders must not get contaminated" or tainted by cloak and dagger operations in grey zones".  And then goes on to name a few DGs ISI who were either not given command and 'side lined' to other unimportant staff appointments or were retired prematurely.

The man doesn't have the basic idea of the postings and placement of senior army officers and blurts out what comes to his mind randomly.  When he says that the Intelligence Generals must be kept away from the GHQ so that Field Commanders are not contaminated, does he know that there are no field commanders in the GHQ except the COAS, who commands the entire army. All others at the GHQ are Staff Officers and Principal Staff Officers (PSOs), who do not even command the peons (Naib Qasids) of their offices. Field commanders are in the field and for his easy understanding they are the Corps Commanders, Divisional Commanders, Brigade Commanders down to Battalion and Company and Platoon commanders.

Again, if we go by his analogy of keeping the DG ISI (Senior most Intelligence Officer) away from the field, then could he tell us where did Lt Gen Nadeem Taj  go after his being posted out from the ISI?  Well, he was appointed Corps Commander Gujranwala and he did not contaminate the command in any way. Similarly, there could be many other examples of the ISI officers being posted to the army Field Appointments.

Trouble with our such pseudo intellectuals (mostly anchor persons) is that they are the Messrs Know All and can wield their pen on any subject under the sun and that too authoritatively.  Only, what they don’t know is their own profession, where the tupennce of a Suhafi persistently shoves the mic most rudely and arrogantly into the face of a dignitary much elder and superior in status and stature to him.  

Col. Riaz Jafri (Retd)