KARACHI: A week after an interview that hit the headlines, former president retired Gen Pervez Musharraf said on Monday that he had never sent a “request” to ex-army chief retired Gen Raheel Sharif to help him leave the country by keeping the government from pressuring the courts.

“No one approached me, nor did I approach anyone... Raheel Sharif did not discuss anything with me, nor did I send him any request,” Mr Musharraf said in a talk show on TV channel 92 News, adding that it was all “conjecture” and that his previous statement on another channel was being “distorted” by media outlets.

“There is a sense of solidarity between the army and me, and it will always remain like that,” he said.

When asked about the military’s influence on politics, he said: “All institutions in Pakistan work together with each other.”

About a statement of Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, the former president said he had no knowledge of any timeline wherein he had been asked to return to the country within four to six weeks after his departure. “There is nothing of the sort in the court’s judgement.”

He said the country’s foreign debt was around $36 billion when he left the office in 2008 but now it was over $75bn. “We have spent $5bn per year in the last eight years but where has all the money gone?” he asked, adding that it had all “gone to the pockets”.

“Frankly, plea bargain started in my era because we did not have even half a billion dollars in the treasury at that time. But it should be used with sense,” Mr Musharraf said and added: “Plea bargain should be granted keeping in mind a ratio and proportion. “No one gets punished in Pakistan. At least, with plea bargain, we can get some funds in the national exchequer.”

The former president went on to say that he understood that the funds from the national exchequer were then handled by “corrupt” leaders, leaving the country at a loss yet again.

“Place the most honest and reputable person from the country as NAB (National Accountability Bureau) chairperson. Pakistan is full of such people,” he said.

Mr Musharraf left the country for Dubai in March, hours after the interior ministry issued a notification, removing his name from the Exit Control List, following a Supreme Court order to lift a ban on his foreign travel.

Published in Dawn, December 27th, 2016