PILDAT welcomes holding of the NSC meeting after 18 Months

of the National Security Committee that took place on April 06, 2016 after a

gap of almost one year and six months. The earlier meeting of the NSC was held

that beset our nation, regular and institutionalized consultation between the

elected civil and military leadership at the forum of the NSC is an urgent and

consistent need. Countries facing far fewer and lesser serious security challenges

have set weekly periodicity of meetings of similar forums. PILDAT has regularly

maintained that the NSC should at least meet monthly, if not more frequently.

Office stating that the Premier chaired the ‘5th meeting of the National

Security Committee of the Cabinet’, raises certain serious

questions. Terming the forum a Committee of the Cabinet is misleading, given

that Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee (CJCSC) and the three Services

Chiefs are members of the NSC but are not members of the Federal Cabinet. Does

the name attributed in the press release reflect a careless approach by the

Government or it shows Government’s changed thinking? It is worth noting

here that the Federal Government has already changed the nomenclature of the

Committee twice already. The forum, which was initially launched and named as

Cabinet Committee on National Security (CCNS) in August 2013, was renamed as

the National Security Committee on April 11, 2014. It was understood that the

name of the forum was changed due to the very reason that membership of the

Committee was not based only on Federal Cabinet Members. If this is a case of

an oversight by the leadership, it only communicates the lack of seriousness

that is associated particularly with regards to this forum, and generally with

regards to institutionalization in matters of national security. If it reflects

a change in thinking, it is indeed equally problematic and technically flawed

of consultation on national security issues. Terming it as ‘the

principal decision making body on matters of national security’,

as its current status is, encroaches upon the powers of the Federal Cabinet.

It is also worth noting that the model of Pakistan’s NSC is an anomaly

in terms of its “decision-making” role. PILDAT research shows that

all similar bodies working around the World are only consultative in nature

and their recommendations are not binding. If Pakistan indeed wishes to give

the NSC decision-making powers, whether or not it is recommended, its existence

should be backed by a legislation, and not just an executive order, as is the