July 10, 2003	Thursday	Jumadi-ul-Awwal 9,1424

Please Visit our Sponsor (Ads open in separate window)

ISLAMABAD, July 9: President Pervez Musharraf asked political parties on Wednesday to give up their opposition to the LFO to strengthen the country politically and militarily.

Addressing the inaugural session of the second national security workshop organized by the National Defence College, the president said he was ready to show flexibility on the LFO and the proposed National Security Council.

The five-week-long workshop is being attended among others by parliamentarians, Nazims, journalists, lawyers and military officials.

Talking to Dawn, insiders quoted the president as having told the participants, including legislators of the PPP, PML-Q, and PML-N, that those who disliked him should keep the national interest supreme, which, in his opinion, dictated that he should keep the offices of president and COAS for the time being.

Referring to the timeframe for divesting his military uniform, he said: “Leave this issue to me. I assure you, with all the honesty and sincerity at my command, that I would remove the military uniform at an appropriate time”, he was quoted as having said.

He was hopeful about a positive outcome of the government-opposition talks, saying that Prime Minister Mir Zafarullah Khan Jamali and his team would arrive at some compromise solution in their upcoming talks with heads of the opposition parties.

Referring to the National Security Council, the president said that it was an advisory body and its recommendations would not be binding upon the government. He said 400 people speak in the parliament on one issue but at the end of the day there is no decision. “That is why I say there is a need for NSC, which will, in fact, be helping both the government and the opposition to overcome their differences”, he asserted.

He said the country’s chief executive (prime minister) was always under tremendous pressure and sometimes it becomes difficult for him to take “correct decisions.” In the presence of NSC, the chief executive could seek its help in taking better decisions on various national and international issues, he added.

The president said that he had nothing personal against any of the political parties or the politician and that he was ready to accept anything which was in the national interest.

He also took the participants into confidence about his recently concluded four-nation tour, saying that he had succeeded in accomplishing many favours for Pakistan.

APP adds: Speaking to the NDC graduates, the president said that the college had played a pivotal role in grooming the senior civil and military officers besides helping prepare quality leadership.

Highlighting the importance of the National Security Workshop, he said that such training courses made the participants aware of elements, which constitute national power, evolution of strategic thought, geo-political concepts and geo- strategic determinate.

Gen Musharraf said that the workshop would enable participants to study the effects of internal and external threats, economics and socio-political environment on formulating a national security strategy.

He said that the workshop would also cover the aspects of management, leadership and decision-making to help policy makers to make well-informed choices dedicated to Pakistan’s security and prosperity.