ISLAMABAD, April 19: A number of parliamentarians, leaders, office-bearers and senior activists of Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) have distanced themselves from the statement of Asif Zardari in which he expressed his desire to continue talks with the establishment and praised the role of the army.

Interviews with senior party leaders and activists revealed that they were unable to defend and elaborate Mr Zardari’s viewpoint and some of them even termed it damaging to the party’s image.

“Ask Zardari about it” was the common reply by most of the party leaders, including opposition leader in the Senate Raza Rabbani and PPP spokesman Senator Farhatullah Babar, when their comments were sought on Mr Zardari’s statement in which he stated that army was a permanent reality and “the PPP would value the opinion of the institution and take it along.”

“I do not want to speak on it and Asif Ali Zardari can be asked for its elaboration,” said Senator Farhatullah Babar when contacted for his official comments.

The PPP leaders believed that Mr Zardari’s such statements could cause a serious damage to the party’s image in the public, which was already confused due to the conflicting reports on the ongoing government-PPP reconciliation process.

“Did we spend two nights in the police lock-up only to come out and read Mr Zardari’s statement that PPP is ready to hold talks with the establishment,” said a senior party office-bearer, who was arrested by the police in Lahore on April 16.

He said it was true that Mr Zardari had spent eight years in jail and had suffered due to the party’s cause, but it did not mean that he had got the right to dictate the party leaders on policy matters.

On the other hand, deputy information secretary of the Alliance for the Restoration of Democracy (ARD) Munir Ahmed Khan, who was present at the press conference of Mr Zardari in Lahore on April 17, said actually Mr Zardari had talked about the role of army as an institution and he did not talk about generals. He said Mr Zardari did not speak about the political role of army or uniformed democracy.

Mr Khan said Mr Zardari had stated that talks could be held with the “real powers” but only on the issues of “democracy and free and fair polls”. He said there was no confusion at the time when Mr Zardari spoke about the role of army, but some people had misinterpreted this statement when it appeared in the national press the next day.

Sources in the party told Dawn that a large number of party workers and leaders had also contacted the party chairperson, Benazir Bhutto, asking her to clarify the party’s policy after the statements of Mr Zardari.

The sources further said a majority of the party workers and activists were unhappy at the party’s leadership for not taking them into confidence on the finalization of the reception plan for Mr Zardari.

They said the party leadership kept on directing them to reach Lahore airport at any cost, but did not disclose the time of the flight’s arrival till the last moment. They said the workers were also angry at the reports that Mr Zardari did not offer any resistance and himself asked the police to take him into custody.