ISLAMABAD, April 5: The mainstream political parties and public opinion leaders have taken strong exception to what Gen Musharraf has tried to impress upon the nation through his one-hour-and-forty-minute speech on Friday evening.

The PPP, PML-N, Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal, Jamaat-i-Islami, JUI (F) and JUI (S) leaders, when contacted by Dawn, unanimously rejected Musharraf’s version of democracy, saying “it would kill federal parliamentary democracy, which was envisioned by the Father of Nation.”

The Pakistan People’s Party vowed to resist Musharraf’s agenda and said Benazir Bhutto will return and take part in the elections.

“The Pakistani Constitution clearly states that the federal and provincial legislatures will elect the President of Pakistan,” a party spokesman said.

It is “illegal, unconstitutional and immoral” for the General to declare himself President through a referendum.

“Political legitimacy, however, will continue to elude General Musharraf just as it eluded General Zia,” he said.

“The PPP also asks the General to clarify beforehand to whom is he going to hand over power, the CJ or another General, in the event of his being rejected by the people at the referendum.”

PML-N’s Senior Vice-President, Akram Zaki, ridiculed the president’s assertion that his referendum was not unconstitutional, saying his claim held no water when the Supreme Court, high court bars and the entire lawyers’ community had rejected the referendum as a route to presidency.

He said the General “wants to impose a democracy of his own liking by foisting himself as its fountainhead.” As far as his rejection of Nawaz Sharif as a nonentity in the country’s politics was concerned, Zaki said this was to be decided by the country’s masses.

Jamaat-i-Islami chief Qazi Hussain Ahmed said that Gen Musharraf had failed to convince the nation about any of his assumptions in his lengthy speech “as he was guilty conscious.” He regretted that the General was oblivious of the respect of the institution of army “to which he was trying to involve in politics.”

He said “he is more exposed for his misdeeds before the nation today and it would be in his own interest to step down at this juncture of national history.”

The JI leader said all the major political parties had already spurned the referendum plan.

JUI (S)’s Maulana Samiul Haq said Musharraf made repeated mention of his performance being appreciated by the people abroad, clearly showing that he was “playing to the tunes of those for whom he was in power.”

He said the president had exposed himself as am autocrat by saying that the parliament, cabinet and the prime minister will have to live in harmony with him. He said: “We don’t understand what would be the type of democracy in which all the elected representatives will be controlled by one unelected person.”