ISLAMABAD, Oct 3: The Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal (MMA) has disputed President Gen Pervez Musharraf’s statement that the issue of his uniform had been settled.
The alliance expressed its resolve that it would not withdraw its demand that the president give in writing the date on which he plans to give up his army post, and that this pledge be made a part of the proposed constitutional package which the government had agreed to present to parliament for assent by a two-thirds majority.
Speaking at a joint news conference of the combined opposition in the National Assembly after its walkout on Friday, MMA’s deputy secretary general Liaqat Baloch said the alliance “continues to demand that Gen Musharraf seek recourse to president’s electoral college.”
Responding to a query, Mr Baloch said the MMA and the government had agreed to a great extent on six out of the seven contentious points of the LFO, leaving only the issue of the president’s uniform.
He warned that if Gen Musharraf kept a decision on the issue pending then the responsibility of ‘any mishap’ would be wholly his.
Referring to Gen Musharraf’s statement that the MMA was in the habit of bringing up new issues when the ones at hand had been settled, he said this spoke volumes about the ‘disinformation’ that the general’s advisers provided to him.
Responding to a question, he said the MMA would wait until Prime Minister Jamali’s return home, and see how he responded to the alliance’s counter proposals.
He said if no positive response came from the PM then the MMA would be free to take recourse to other means, including mounting a mass contact campaign to press the government into accepting its demands.
Explaining the mode of mass contact, he said there will be eight conventions between October 15-18 in as many district headquarters of Punjab, besides Ulema and Mashaikh conventions details of which would be finalized on Oct 13.
