World | Pakistan
Musharraf 'will not get party support'
Jehangir Bader, secretary general of Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), has said the party will never support President General Pervez Musharraf in his bid to get re-elected for another term.
- By Ashfaq Ahmed, Correspondent
- Published: 00:00 December 25, 2006
- Image Credit: Gulf News Archives
- Jehangir Bader, Secretary-General of Pakistan People's Party.
Dubai: Jehangir Bader, secretary general of Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), has said the party will never support President General Pervez Musharraf in his bid to get re-elected for another term.
"It is against the spirit of the PPP to support a military dictator. We have never done this in the past and will never do it in the future because we want pure democratic system in Pakistan," Bader said during his recent visit to Dubai.
Speaking to Gulf News at a reception organised by Muneer Hans, a senior PPP supporter in the UAE, Bader said the party would never accept a president in uniform.
However, he said the PPP is part of the Alliance for Restoration of Democracy (ARD), an alliance of opposition parties. "We have to follow such policy decision after consensus of the ARD leadership," he said.
Differences
General Musharraf's five-year term as president of Pakistan will end in October while the assemblies will complete their five years stint in November. The PPP's role in the re-election of Musharraf has become very crucial especially after the Muttahida-Majlis-e-Amal (MMA) - the six religious parties alliance - parted its way from Musharraf after developing differences.
PPP has 55 seats in the National Assembly of Pakistan and reports of talks and a possible deal between the government and the PPP have already been reported in the media.
"There is no deal between the PPP and the government," said Bader. He said the PPP had never given such an impression. "Such rumours always came from the government side because the ruling party wants to keep its allies under pressure for fear of losing them," he said.
Bader said PPP Chairwoman Benazir Bhutto has completed her homework and the party is fully ready for the next general elections.
"We are reorganising the party from the grass roots levels and are getting ready to receive Mohtarma, [Benazir] as she is determined to return to Pakistan before the next general elections," he said.
About the importance of the Charter of Democracy signed between the PPP and the Nawaz Sharif led PML-N, Bader said it is a document of vision. "Through this document, we agree to have joint struggle against the military rulers and to restore 'real democracy' in the country. Also both the parties are now bound to respect each other if any one of them wins to form the next government," he said.
Adjustments
Bader said there would be no electoral alliance with the PML-N. "But yes, there is possibility of seat adjustments meaning we will not pitch candidates against each other in certain areas," added Bader, who had been twice federal minister and served as senator during the last two stints of the PPP's government.
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