Islamabad: President Dr Arif Alvi has said that former Prime Minister Imran Khan was satisfied with the appointment of General Asim Munir as the new Army Chief, defending his decision to hold a consultation with the PTI chairman over the appointment.
In an interview with the BBC, President Alvi noted that the “undue importance” given to social media was one of the major reasons for the differences between Imran Khan and ex-Army Chief (R) Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa.
President Alvi urged negotiations among “all stakeholders”, including the ruling coalition government and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI). He said that differences were part of democracy, however, all needed to make united efforts to save the country from economic collapse.
“I am not insisting about [holding talks with] PTI chief Imran Khan, but at least the political parties should hold discussions, and after that, the leaders can also meet,” he said.
Asked if he was brokering any dialogue between Imran Khan and the current army leadership, President Alvi that he was not facilitating dialogue between Imran Khan and the military leadership.
Calling 2023 an election year, the President said the political parties should also negotiate about it whether to hold the polls sooner or later, plus or minus a few months.
The President said that he had been personally making efforts to reduce tension among stakeholders and termed social media “a major reason” behind the differences between Imran Khan and former army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa.
He said undue importance paid to social media resulted in misunderstandings and pointed out that “decision-making elements” in the country failed to effectively handle social media.
“I have been trying to bring people together to help them end their mistrust, and I will continue to do so. It is my constitutional responsibility to keep the federation united,” he said.
