Pakistan's military leader, Gen. Pervez Musharraf, gave himself a promotion last week. He had himself sworn in as president, a mere five hours after the previous office holder had been forced to step down. Mr. Musharraf claims that he took the post reluctantly, declaring that the decision was "one of the most difficult" he ever had to make. He took the fateful step, nonetheless. That makes him the fourth military leader to take control of Pakistan; each of those previous attempts to "save" the country from its politicians only further undermined the rule of law and Pakistan's future prospects.
Mr. Musharraf first took power in October 1999, throwing then Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif out of office after accusing him of corruption and abuse of power. He declared himself "chief executive" and promised to hold elections in 2002.
Upon taking his new office last week, Mr. Musharraf formally abolished the elected parliaments that he had suspended in 1999, but he also pledged that those elections would still be held by October 2002 as scheduled.