Book Review | Ye Khamoshi Ka’han Tak | Lt. Gen. Shahid Aziz

Lt. Gen. Shahid Aziz | Ye Khamoshi Ka’han Tak | Lt. Gen. Shahid Aziz | Seven Springs Publishers, Islamabad, 2012 | Distributed by Saeed Book Bank Bank, Islamabad | Also translated in English

“Kulzum e Hasti sey tu ubh’ra hai manin’de hubab,

Iss zi’yan khaney mey tera imtehan hai zindagi.”

(Iqbal)

I would categorize this as one of the very sad books that I have read. It is not available in print anymore.

Lt. Gen. Shahid Aziz served some prestigious posts in the army; Corps Commander Lahore, Head of Analysis Wing at ISI, Chief of General Staff at GHQ etc. As Director General Military Operations he supervised the October 1999 Coup d’etat from the GHQ. For his professional abilities he was poised to move to the higher (four star) position of Vice Chief of Army Staff. But he had a fatal flaw which could hurt the exiting order. He was obsessed with expresses his views candidly.

On retirement, he was posted as Chairman NAB (National Accountability Bureau). NAB was created by Gen. Musharraf as a watchdog for containing corruption. Aziz was the second NAB Chief. Both the President (Gen. Musharraf) and the Prime Minister (Shaukat Aziz) appeared visibly upset when NAB unearthed massive corruption in DHA and the Sugar and Oil Sectors.

Shahid Aziz resigned from NAB when he was prevented from carrying the ongoing investigation against Benazir-Zardari, presumably to save the power sharing agreement under the negotiation between Musharraf and Benazir, which was jointly initiated by UK and USA. The notorious National Reconciliation Ordinance, legalizing all past loot kosher was promulgated by Gen Musharraf as the final outcome. Paradoxically no stake holder ultimately benefited from the NRO, which the Supreme Court termed illegal, albeit after all was quite on the Western Front.

Lt. Gen. Shahid Aziz’s account vindicates the theory of corruption put forth by your’s truly, that financial misdoings are merely the tip of the iceberg in the overall structure. Tentacles of intellectual corruption are entrenched deeply in all arms of our Government, military and judiciary being no exception.

November 2019