The strictest of codes

The German Army was often called, in the late Nineteenth century, as an Army with a country. Bismarck had set in motion a series of events that led to the unification of Germany and then onto two great World Wars in the twentieth century, the last resulting in the dismemberment of Germany into many parts and the re-drawing of Europe’s map, with ideological basis predominant over nationalistic fervour. The communist ideologies was more pronounced in theoretical lip-service rather than the spirit of the teachings espoused, net result was the obliteration of communism in Europe and the rise of a unified Germany comprising the core of a 100 million German speaking people, this in the face of recent disintegration of the artificially created European republics post-World War 2.

The Pakistan Army may not be exactly the goose-stepping model of the German Armed Forces but the discipline, training, selection and promotions procedure are modelled closely on the pattern followed by Germany post-First World War leading upto the Second World War. During this time, other modern armies had adopted more or less the same procedures, not much different from selecting the executives and promotion thereof in any corporate structure. The Pakistan Army of today and the German Army of the last century are comparable insofar because of the circumstances availing since the independence of the country 45 years ago, the Pakistan Army serves as the rock of the last resort for Pakistan as a nation during internal and external crisis. In a country where political leadership alternates between being brilliant and bankrupt or both at the same time, the Army is the one institution that has universal confidence among the masses and this an awesome responsibility that goes far beyond any Army’s charter and tends to run afoul of the letter of the constitution but not the spirit thereof in protecting the country from internal and external dangers.

Of what manner of men are the Army’s hierarchy, of what combination of brains, brawns, experience and character are the top leadership of the primary institution of the country? To understand one must go back to the time that one out of 100 aspirants from all over the country is selected to become a Gentleman Cadet in the Pakistan Military Academy, leading to a commission as an officer in the Pakistan Army. Almost every cadet who joins the Pakistan Military Academy aspires to become a General, some even hope to become the Chief of the Army Staff, the top slot in the Pakistan Army. This is the type of ambition that is encouraged, an incentive that extracts the best out of the officers as they travel up the line in seniority and experience.
Throughout his life of as a cadet and as an officer, the individual remains under cynosure and assessment by superior officers. As he grows in seniority, the dossier of the officer grows, relevant records being maintained by the Military Secretary’s (MS) Branch in GHQ. There is all-Army Lieutenant to Captain and a Captain to Major Promotion Examinations that the officer must clear before he can go onto the next rank. As a Field Officer, his next rank depends upon whether he clears his Staff College Entrance Examination, attends the Command and Staff College at Quetta and after doing a stint in Staff, is selected for promotion to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel, being put in command of an infantry battalion, artillery or armoured regiment or as the case may be for other Services. Some officers do get promoted even without having done the Command and Staff College, such cases are rare and very few make it to the next rank, except in technical disciplines like the Medical Corps, EME, etc. Till the rank of Major, promotion is virtually automatic depending upon seniority and/or vacancies. After the rank of Major, it becomes a matter of selection by different Boards of officers.

A normal batch of the Pakistan Military Academy used to consist in the 50s and 60s of about 100-120 cadets, who by the time of graduation were reduced by almost 20-25% to about 75-100. Another 5-7% or so fell by the wayside upto the Field Officers grade. At this stage, less than 50% of the remaining officers make it to the selected rank of Lieutenant Colonel (Lt Col). Given the statistics, a PMA Course of 120 would serve up about 35-40 Lt Cols in various Arms and Services. The next rank, promotion to the Colonel’s rank or even that of a Brigadier, depending upon the vacancies is even tougher. The PMA Long Courses of the 60s have each about 12-15 Brigadiers (12% of the original PMA intake), selected by a GHQ Promotion Board consisting of the COAS, Corps Commanders and some Principal Staff Officers (PSOs). The Army War Course at the National Defence College (NDC) or the NDC Course itself is a pre-requisite for the next rank of Major General. Out of the 15 or so Brigadiers, one is likely to make it to the rank of Major General in the Armoured Corps, two or maybe three in the Infantry and one each in Engineers and Signal Corps, a total of perhaps 5 or 6 out of the original 120. Maybe 1 (or possibly 2) will make it to the next rank of Lieutenant General and take the command of a Corps. Depending upon the seniority, time schedule, age, experience, personality and lack of controversy, one officer from 8 to 9 batches of PMA becomes the Chief of Army Staff (COAS). In a way, the present COAS Gen Asif Nawaz was thus selected out of the original 900-1000 cadets who went into the army during 1956-1960. In Gen Asif’s case he made his mark early, having been selected as a cadet from the PMA Long Course to complete his training at the Royal Military Academy, Sandhurst in UK, a prestigious training experience and honour that was an early indicator of possible future promise.

Obviously the COAS has to have the qualifications expected out of him after such a rigorous and long process, one that separates the genuinely deserving from the rest, it is also in the fitness of things that many deserving candidates cannot make it to the top because of the fact that there is room for only one person at that level. This is a fact of life and even the people considered desperately unlucky have to accept it with good grace. In every course of the PMA, there are at least 5 or 6 cadets who are clearly marked for attaining high rank. As the career of the officers goes on, some other officers really come into their own, out of the favourite 5 or 6, some drop out to be replaced by career professionals who are late in showing their nettle but come out to the top by sheer merit. Over a period of 4-5 years or 9-10 Courses of PMA, there thus are about 50 officers who rise to the rank of Major General, only one makes it to the top of the slot as COAS.

It is not correct to assume that all those who rise to the Major General have made it on sheer merit. In any organisation there are those who manage to climb to higher rank by currying favour with their seniors, there are some who are blessed with a gift of the gab and can keep any audience spellbound, thus impressing their superior with or without the depth of professionalism. In effect, this is a “Dance of the Sycophants”, a most dangerous lot throughout history, these are those who change loyalties and masters without losing a step and then carry out intrigues to eclipse their perceived rivals. Some make it on their family connections despite their poor character and/or record but the majority are hardworking and disciplined professionals who reach that level because of their sustained dedication and outstanding discipline.

Disappointment does not really show on promotion from the rank of Major General to Lieutenant General, it becomes acute at the next stage in the process of selection of the COAS. It could be that some Lieutenant Generals feel that they could have been a better candidate but in the final analysis the race is always close among the deserving. Once the selection has been announced, the unwielding authority of the selected person cannot be questioned and decisions have to be accepted with good grace and in silence. This is the strict code that holds the whole Army together as one institution. In the case of the Pakistan Army, this has meant that, barring 1971 when the whole country disintegrated along geographical lines, the COAS’s word has been the unquestioned law — and that is as it should be. There can be no debate post-selection and there can be no dissent shown by those disappointed. Honourable people resign their commission rather than display dissent, to do otherwise would be to foment unrest and dissatisfaction leading possibly to civil wars among warlords, this is totally unacceptable. There have been many battle tested Pakistan Army Generals who did not become C-in-C or COAS, among them Lt Gen Habibullah Khan Khattak and Major General Latif in the 50s, the two Malik Brothers, Lt Gen Akhtar and Abdul Ali in the Middle 60s, Lt Gens Malik Abdul Majid in the early 70s, to name just a few.

Obedience without question is the hallmark of discipline in the Army. One does not question promotion or postings, to do otherwise would be to destroy the structure of the army as an institution, to vacillate in taking action against a defaulter would be to invite debate about more important decisions at crucial times. Lt Gen (Retd) Hameed Gul must have been acutely disappointed at not making COAS but he certainly was not in the same qualification league as that of his peers in earlier years as to battle and command experience besides field-soldiering. The requirements of character at that level dictated that he should have hid his personal disappointment in the larger interest of the institution that he served. If he had grievances, he should have moved to the destination of his posting and asked for redress as is given in the regulations. Failure to do so made him vulnerable on disciplinary grounds, failure to take action against him would have destroyed the authority of the COAS that holds the discipline of the Army together. As painful surgical operations are, sometimes they are necessary. For the greater good of the Pakistan Army as an institution, the recent incident was a painful but salutary example of the application of the strict code of the Army. One must learn a lesson from quote of the famous Col Skorzeny of Germany; the man known as Commando Extraordinary, “Politics is the soldier’s curse!”

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