Stephen Cohen says Pak Army will not want ex-COAS Musharraf impeached

Lahore, Aug 14 : Despite recurrent news reports emerging from Islamabad that the Pakistan Army won't interfere in the federal government-initiated Impeachment Process against President Pervez Musharraf, a leading US-based expert on South Asia has said that the Pakistan Army "will not like to see its former chief impeached".

Musharraf's impeachment would be a "bad precedent", and that traditionally the Pakistan Army had protected its former chiefs, said Stephen Cohen, a US analyst and expert on South Asia.

He further said that Musharraf's impeachment would distract the government from performing its major tasks, including the "war on terror", reported the Daily Times.

He said that Musharraf had lost his grip on power, and asked the present coalition government to get rid of the impeachment issue as soon as possible, so that it could pay attention to more critical issues like rebuilding the country's democracy and educational system.

Pakistan's politics always moved around personalities rather than issues, he said and added that it would be better for the country if it focused more on issues rather than personalities.

ANI