General Qamar Javed Bajwa is the current Chief of Army Staff (COAS) of the Pakistan Army having been appointed so in 2016, ahead of two more senior generals, by then prime minister Nawaz Sharif. His tenure of the post was extended for another three years by then prime minister, Imran Khan, in August 2019—something which critics pointed to as further evidence of who is really controlling Pakistan. Since the chaotic political events of 2022, there has been increased public scrutiny of the influence of the army in the democratic system.