Pakistan army's long reach extends throughout society

When Pakistan's army officers are not watching their old rival India or fighting Taleban insurgents, they are running a business empire that gives them an iron hold on society.

As one saying goes here: "Every country has an army, Pakistan's army has a country."

Pakistan's 600,000-strong army has financial muscle flexed across industries from oil and gas to cereals and real estate - it even set up its own airline. Its Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) spy agency is so pervasive it is described as a "state within a state".

"The expanse of the military is unimaginable," said Ayesha Siddiqa, author of Military Inc, which shines a light on the eye-popping sway that the army has beyond security affairs.

"They even run bakeries. From micro-level activity to macro-level activity they are everywhere."

You don't have to look far beyond the capital for a glimpse of the military's wealth. In one suburb, workers water lawns and trim hedges on farms where both active and retired generals live in swanky villas.

Given its grip on security, society and its stunning economic reach, no wonder many find it hard to believe that the army did not know that the world's most-wanted man had been living for years just 30 miles from Islamabad.

The government has rejected allegations that the killing of Osama bin Laden by US special forces in the garrison town of Abbottabad on 2 May showed Pakistani incompetence in tracking him down or complicity in hiding him.

But dislodging suspicion that the army knew all along where the al-Qaeda leader was holed up may be difficult, given the army's vast sphere of influence.

The military has ruled Pakistan for more than half of its short history and, although it is not ruling the country now, its far-reaching clout maintains a lop-sided balance of power between the security establishment and the civilian government.

This generates permanent doubt about the stability of the nuclear-armed country, which has seen three military coups since it was carved out of India in 1947.

Despite its business empire, which Siddiqa estimates is worth up to $15 billion, the military is a huge drain on the country's finances. She says about 26 per cent of government expenditure flows to the defence budget.

Dependent on an $11bn International Monetary Fund loan to keep the economy afloat, the government is already struggling to deliver on crucial tax and energy sector reforms that would bring fiscal discipline.

However, turning the tables on the military is highly unlikely in the South Asian nation where a civilian government has never served out its full five-year term.