'I was sacked because I didn't sign government's affidavit'

Former Defence Secretary Lieutenant General Khalid Naeem Lodhi (retired) said on Friday that he was sacked without being given any reason by Prime Minister Yousuf Gilani. Talking to some private media channels, Lodhi reportedly said he was sacked because he did not sign the government's affidavit in the Memogate case.
The former Defence Secretary claimed that he merely replied to the questions asked by the Supreme Court. Lodhi said that he was asked to sign an affidavit on behalf of government which he refused to sign, "that's why, I was sacked. How could I sign an affidavit which was not mine," Lodhi explained. "I was dismissed without calling any explanation or serving show cause notice," he said.
In what could be termed as an effort to defuse the ongoing tension between the government and the army, the Prime Minister has summoned a meeting of the Defence Committee of Cabinet (DCC) on Saturday. Federal ministers who are its members, Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee and the services chiefs would attend the meeting to be chaired by the prime minister.
APP adds: the Spokesman of the Establishment Division, however, has said that the former Secretary Defence Lieutenant General Naeem Khalid Lodhi (Retd) sent the letters to the Supreme Court without seeking the approval of the Minister for Defence. The Spokesman said the approval was mandatory and also without getting the comments vetted from the Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs required under Rules of Business 1973, which have been framed under Article 99 of the Constitution.
The Spokesman said the Minister for Defence asked for the explanation from the former Secretary Defence for not observing the legal provision. He stated in his reply that he was new to the job and was, therefore, ignorant of the rules. The Minister for Defence received the explanation from former Defence Secretary and referred the matter to the Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs for expert views.
The Spokesman said that the Ministry of Law gave the opinion that the action of the former Secretary Defence was in utter and gross violation of the mandatory rule. The action had created misunderstandings among the institutions, the Spokesman added.
The Spokesman further said that Naeem Khalid Lodhi was a contract employee and the terms and conditions of his service could be terminated without assigning any reason with a prior notice of 30 days or payment of one month's salary. On the recommendations of the Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs and the Minister for Defence, the Prime Minister terminated his contract in national interest.