'PM nominee will be based on coalition partners' consensus'

Islamabad: In a twist to the ongoing process to nominate a prime minister, the leader of Pakistan Peoples Party Asif Ali Zardari has said the choice would be made on the basis of consensus of all partners in the incoming coalition government.

Zardari told the Dawn News television channel in an interview that the top slot would go to a "consensus candidate" of PPP, Pakistan Muslim League-N of former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, Jamiat Ulema Islam of Fazlur Rehman and the supportive independents.

"I will take everybody into confidence and then I will announce [premiership candidate]," said the co-chairman of PPP, which as the largest party in the newly elected National Assembly is to lead a ruling coalition.

Zardari pointed out that the February elections did not yield even a simple majority to the PPP and the existing political situation in the country had to be taken into account. "A prime minister will be a consensus candidate of all [coalescing] political parties," he said.

Naming a prime minister has apparently turned into a difficult exercise for the PPP leadership after reservations surfaced in Sharif's party over the candidacy of Makhdoom Ameen Fahim, a senior PPP figure from Sind. MP-elect Khawja Asif of PML-N publicly voiced the reservations because of what he called Fahim's contacts with President Pervez Musharraf. An angered Fahim said he had issued a legal notice to the PML-N member for "character assassination".

In another development, a number of PPP lawmakers disclosed that during Zardari's consultations with the party's parliamentarians a consensus had emerged on the co-chairman assuming the top job after being elected to the assembly through a by-election and until then a person be named to hold the fort.

Interim leader

Ahmad Mukhtar, a PPP veteran from Punjab province who defeated president of pro-Musharraf PML-Q Shujaat Hussain in the elections, is widely tipped to be interim prime minister.

Fahim, however, continues to insist that he remained a strong candidate for the top office, even though he said he would step back if Zardari decided to become prime minister. He has had two meetings with Zardari in three days, but the talks reportedly left matters unresolved.

Speaking to reporters after a meeting here yesterday with Fazlur Rehman, he said it was a friendly get together and was not meant to lobby support for his premiership candidature.

Asked about his chances of winning the nomination, he said the "political chessboard" was laid out and one had to wait for the outcome.

Rehman said as the lead party it was the right of the PPP to name a prime minister and "we are committed to supporting whatever decision is taken".

The Jamiat Ulema Islam leader said his party wanted the PPP to remain united and the political process to move forward without any hiccups.

President Musharraf has summoned the first session of the 342-member National Assembly on March 17 for oath-taking by the legislators-elect, to be followed next day by another sitting during which the house will elect a speaker and deputy speaker.

According to a joint statement issued on Thursday by senior leaders from PPP and PML-N after discussions on the formation of the government, a formal meeting of all coalition would be held on March 17 to "formalise and finalise matters relating to the coalition".

The PPP leadership is expected to announce its choice of a prime minister after the inaugural session of the assembly.