ISLAMABAD: The National Assembly on Thursday approved amendments to the Army, Navy, and Air Force Acts, following the federal cabinet’s approval of the proposed changes.
Earlier, the cabinet approved the amendments, shortly after President Asif Ali Zardari signed the 27th Constitutional Amendment into law.
The purpose of the amendments is to align the armed forces laws with the 27th Amendment, read a statement issued by the Prime Minister’s Office.
The legislation has been enacted following amendments to Article 243 of the Constitution, which includes provisions regarding the tenure of the Chief of Defence Forces, it added.
Defence Minister Khawaja Asif presented the bills concerning the armed forces, while Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar introduced the bill to amend the Practice and Procedure Rules.
Speaking on the floor of the house, Tarar clarified that the changes were not new laws, but amendments to existing legislation.
“The change in the Army Act is that the current Chief of Army Staff will concurrently be the Chief of Defence Forces [CDF], and the Chairman Joint Chief of Staff’s position will cease to exist once the incumbent general retires,” he said.
The law minister said that the CDF’s term would be five years from the date of his appointment.
He added that certain provisions have been removed from the Navy and Air Force Acts, while others have been introduced.
The amendments to Article 243 introduced, in addition to the CDF post, honorary titles such as Field Marshal, Marshal of the Air Force, and Admiral of the Fleet.
Only the parliament would have the power to reverse the titles of the armed forces’ chiefs to impeach them.
Additionally, the prime minister would appoint the National Strategic Command’s commander from the Army on the CDF’s recommendation.
Meanwhile, Tarar said that amendments to the Practice and Procedure Act have led to the cessation of the Constitutional Benches.
The prime minister will now send a summary for the appointment of the Chief Justice of the Federal Constitutional Court, he added.
The law minister said the amendments were aimed at aligning the laws governing the judiciary with the 27th Amendment.
This is a developing story and is being updated with further details.
