Many voices are being heard that seek General Ashfaq Parvez Kayanis intervention 'a la General Waheed Kakar style to end the current executive-judiciary confrontation. A leading anchor of a private television channel and reputed editor from the same powerful media group have called for the armys role to save the country from sliding towards anarchy. Another anchor of a famous television talk show, incidentally from the same media group awaits a 'benevolent dictator to undertake a comprehensive cleanup of the corrupt mafias, cartels and looters of national wealth. More surprising was the former ISPR Heads recent write up in a leading newspaper in which he advocated that another General Kakar act was due. He concluded by stating: Another Waheed Kakar style timely act may well be in order to get the executive (to which the Army Chief is a part) to withdraw its briefs. The aforesaid attempts in certain media quarters to lure the army into a 'soft intervention are fraught with dangers. Those who are behind this move are neither well wishers of the country nor the army and may have their own axe to grind. Are they ignorant of the ramifications of inciting the army against the democratically elected public office holders? Have we not learnt our lessons from the past? On July 17, 1993, then COAS General Waheed Kakar had 'persuaded President Ghulam Ishaq Khan as well as Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to quit their posts to end the grave political crisis and tensions between the President and Prime Minister. This political impasse had resulted in the aftermath of the judiciarys restoration of Nawaz Sharifs government after its dismissal by President Ghulam Ishaq under the Constitutions infamous Article 58-2(b). At a stage when the army is deeply involved in anti-militancy operations in FATA, any distraction from this national commitment or deviation from the military principle of 'maintenance of aim could result in loss of momentum in the war against the militants. The nation is aware of the consequences, should the FATA military operations slacken and militants get the chance to regroup in the regained areas. Moreover, Pak army remains under intense US pressure to launch the dangerous and most risky offensive into North Waziristan in the coming months. The recent flying visits of General David Petraeus, General Stanley McChrystal and the CIA Chief to Pakistan also had the North Waziristan operation high on their agenda. So the nation would least desire the army to get entangled unnecessarily into civilian complexities in these difficult times. One can imagine the political and internal security fallouts should the unanimously elected President decide to defy the Army Chiefs 'request to step down. Can the country afford a replay of the instability and turmoil of that witnessed after CJ Iftikhar Chaudhrys historic defiance in the face of General Pervez Musharraf? Would General Kayani allow the nations goodwill, respect and support, that the army earned in the post-Musharraf era, by staying away from politics, go down the drain? Is it the armys responsibility to clear the mess created by greedy and self-serving politicians? Any form of military intervention may result in a political backlash and create a civil-military divide that would least serve the cause of national unity. With over two years only since the last elections, why is the Army Chief being encouraged to 'show the door to the top leadership? Does the nation see a dead end? It is true that the ruling coalition faces a serious crisis of governance and credibility wherein mega financial scams involving high government functionaries are the order of the day. Leading public sector setups like Pakistan Steel, Railways and PSO are in intensive care, struggling to survive in a climate of financial mismanagement and corruption. Nothing could be worse than the 2008-09 Auditor Generals Report that has declared colossal losses due to financial irregularities or corruption to the tune of Rs 323 billion in the public sector organisations. With rising discontent, unbearable price hikes, closure of industries, and uncontrollable energy loadshedding, the common man faces severe hardships that are unprecedented in the countrys history. For the sake of democracy, any change in the current set-up, therefore, must come from within the system through democratic and constitutional means. If the presidency is the root cause of all the nations sufferings, then public pressure must mount for the Presidents impeachment as per the Constitution. The judiciary must also speedily decide cases about the Presidents holding of dual office and his eligibility or immunity post-NRO, without further delay so as to end the current state of uncertainty vis--vis the Presidents future. An in-house change may remove the fire-fighting PM, who certainly disappointed the nation by failing to assert his new found powers after the 18th Amendment. The PMs open support to a controversial ex-MNA, who had earlier resigned after admitting his fake degree in the Supreme Court, caused irreparable damage to his image. What message did the PM communicate to the young Pakistani generation? If the PM takes pride in toeing the party line in recommending presidential pardons to convicts, crooks and cronies, it reflects an open defiance and ridicule of the judiciary. Then he must accept full responsibility for the prevailing chaos and should be accountable to the nation. If the 'Jamshed Dasti type Parliament fails to cleanse its House of reportedly dozens of fake degree holders and deliver as per the peoples aspirations, it then must go. More important than the fake degrees are the principles of morality and integrity that need to be upheld at the highest level. The 'Waheed Kakar option worked well for 17 years ago. It may not be doable in todays Pakistan in the presence of a strong and independent judiciary, and political forces that will zealously unite against any ultra-constitutional act. Let General Kayani and the army keep serving the country. Why adopt the Kakar approach when the civil society-media-judiciary combination will most hopefully deliver The writer is a retired Brigadier. Email: fhkhan54@gmail.com