ISLAMABAD, Oct 12: The government is in contact with the leaders of the successful political parties to help form the new government as quickly as possible.

Informed sources said that President Pervez Musharraf held an informal meeting with his close military and civilian aides at the Aiwan-i-Sadr here on Saturday and discussed with them the emerging political scenario.

The president, who is scheduled to leave for Turkey on Sunday to attend an Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO) summit, will again hold a meeting with his confidants after his arrival on Oct 15 or on Oct 16 to discuss the post-elections situation. He is also expected to preside over a meeting of the federal cabinet next week.

The sources said Gen Musharraf also planned to invite the leaders of the successful parties to discuss with them the future political setup, including the nomination of the new prime minister.

The president has already announced that he would be handing over powers to the new prime minister by Nov 1.

However, the sources said, it might take some time to decide who would be the next prime minister. Former speaker of the National Assembly Illahi Bukhsh Soomro and President of PML(Q) Mian Azhar, who were considered as the potential candidates for the slot of prime minister, have suffered defeat in the elections.

However, the PML(Q) is confident that it would be able to form the future government.

“We are not in a hurry as we will be the majority party in the National Assembly, therefore, we will elect our leader (PM) as and when required,” said a PML(Q) leader.

Talking to Dawn, he said his party would cooperate with all major political parties to form the new government.

On the other hand, the PPP was also hopeful to form its government with the help of PML(N), MQM and independent candidates. Sources said the leader of the People’s Party Parliamentarians, Makhdoom Amin Fahim, who was expected to return from London on Saturday night after discussing future strategy with Benazir Bhutto, was also in touch with the Musharraf administration.