After the 27th Amendment, the appointment of the chief of defence forces (CDF) is neither a personal privilege nor an executive favour. It is now a constitutional obligation -- fixed in law, stripped of discretion and shielded from politics.
Yes, the PM signs the notification, but the decision is no longer his to block because the CDF post exists constitutionally, not politically. Yes, the PM signs the notification, but the decision is no longer his to block because the 27th Amendment created the CDF and a PM -- or any other person -- cannot ‘freeze’ a constitutional office that parliament has already established.
To be certain, the post-27th Amendment architecture is designed to prevent a single political actor from blocking the apex of a unified defence command. Notably, even without the new CDF notification, the army chief remains in office under the Army Act as amended in 2024 (that already gives the COAS a five-year tenure).
Before the passage of the 27th Amendment, formal authority was with the PM while real authority was with GHQ; that duality produced bargaining space. After the passage of the 27th Amendment, the duality is gone -- and so is the bargaining space.
Under the new setup, no political actor can ‘replace’ or ‘pressure’ the army chief because removing or manipulating the position of CDF/COAS is constitutionally constrained and institutionally impossible.
Over the past 37 years, Pakistan has suffered three coups and nine army-chief extensions or removals. To be sure, every single one triggered political paralysis and economic collapse. The new system ends that cycle.
Under the old setup, Saudi Arabia, UAE, China and the US were never sure whether tomorrow’s key signature would still be valid. Under the new setup, a constitutionally locked CDF/COAS means contracts, defence deals and investment pledges signed in 2025 cannot be renegotiated or frozen because someone changed the chair. That certainty alone is worth billions in fresh FDI.
Where authority was once contested, it is now codified. And national interest has now been written into the constitution.
