To this date, the person taking over from Gen Pervez Musharraf as the new Chief of Pakistan Army has been careful so as to avoid the country’s political battlefield. While mounting international pressures have resulted in Gen Musharraf stepping down before he is sworn in for another five-years as a civilian president soon, General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani has been concentrating his time and efforts on the borders and visiting the troops fighting pro-Taliban forces up North.The General’s top most priority will now be leading the most disciplined and organized group within Pakistan: The Pakistan Army and he is well aware of the hot seat he will be in. More than any thing else, he knows that before him four army chiefs have seized power in military coups in the past 60-years.

It has been said that Musharraf has ‘hand picked’ those who are to replace him. In fact, Gen Musharraf’s real power is the Army itself and the very act of taking off his uniform will possibly render him vulnerable… in every aspect. A clear example of which is the former prime minister Zulfiqar Bhutto, who was ousted and later hanged when his ’hand picked’ military chief General Zia ul Haq turned the tables on him in 1977.

It is only a matter of time when we’ll see whether the saying ‘Kings will dispose off their King-Makers ’ actually holds true. Musharraf is giving up a significant amount of power when he steps off his position as a military chief.  So will the person you trust the most also end up being the one most likely to betray you?

There is no question that in the past 8 or 9 years, a lot of power has been pumped in to the Army. Passing on the Chief’s post to another will also ensure the transfer of that very power. Gen Musharraf is not the only one looking forward to a trust-worthy Army chief in this regard. The United States ensured that the US Deputy Secretary of State John Negroponte met twice with Kayani during his recent trip to Islamabad. Surely, Washington is concerned about the future of Pakistan’s strategic and nuclear assests as well as the continuous support on the War on Terror.

All eyes are set on Gen Kiyani now.

Will he be the one to bring about a change with regards to Pakistan Army’s role in the country’s politics?

What will he do if the current demonstrations against Gen Musharraf turn in to a massive movement?

Will he step in or keep the Army out at all cost? 

Only time will tell.