December 28, 2003	Sunday	Ziqa’ad 4, 1424

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QUETTA, Dec 27: Politicians and government officials on Friday condemned the suicide attacks on the life of President Gen Pervez Musharraf.

Balochistan Chief Minister Jam Mir Mohammad Yousuf in a statement issued here on Friday expressed concern over the attack on the president’s life, saying it was an attack was against the development of democracy and the people of Pakistan.

Reposing his confidence in the leadership of President Pervez Musharraf, he said that the president’s life had been saved by divine intervention, adding the people would foil all such attacks.

Praising Gen Musharraf for displaying courage in the face of explicit threat to his life, he expressed the hope that the government would be succeed in crushing extremist groups.

Provincial minister Maulana Abdul Wasay termed the attack on president’s life an attempt to weaken Pakistan.

He urged the government to expose extremist groups before the people, saying they should be given exemplary punishment.

Deputy Speaker of Balochistan Assembly Mohammad Aslam Bhootani, while condemning the attack, said that extremists wanted to portray Pakistan a backward and narrow-minded country.

Complimenting the president for initiating mega development project in a bid to bring Balochistan at par with other developed provinces, he said the people of Balochistan stood by the president at the critical juncture.

Acting president of the National Awami Party Raziq Bugti said the incident was the direct result of the wrong policies of the country’s previous rulers and blamed them for promoting extremism in the country.

In a statement issued here on Friday, he expressed concern over the incident and criticized the government for having failed to provide protection to the country’s president.

He also termed suicide attacks a bid to sabotage the forthcoming Saarc summit.

Information secretary of the Balochistan National Party also expressed concern over the attack, saying attackers were the same people who had tried sectarian strife by attacking Imam Bargah in Quetta.

Expressing concern over the rise in extremism in the country, he said the government should take steps to discourage the trend, adding democratic forces should be allowed to flourish as it would help curtail sectarianism.