I'm not particularly fond of the "cameo" approach at all; the PT did definitely fail in this regard.

However, something I've heard over and over again is that the PT is far too "jedi-centric", and that it would be really cool to see how everything is affecting the general population.

Also, I find the idea of using Han to fill this role would be far more likely to appease fans than Ady introducing totally new characters of his own creation.

I do digress though, as further research has shown me that Han is only 29 in ANH, where I had previously believed him to be in his mid/late thirties. Under my previous age assumption, Han would have been 16-18 in RotS, providing for a much more interesting story arc than a 10 year old.