ISLAMABAD, March 7: The Alliance for the Restoration of Democracy (ARD) said on Tuesday that US President George Bush’s visit to Islamabad had exposed President Gen Pervez Musharraf’s ‘failure’ and demanded elections under a neutral set-up.

Talking to reporters after a meeting of the alliance, ARD chairman Makhdoom Amin Fahim said the visit had proved that Gen Musharraf had lost his credibility in the eyes of the US and it seemed that the days of the government had been numbered.

“The US president’s visit has exposed the failure of Gen Musharraf and his foreign policy,” he said, adding that Mr Bush had actually come to South Asia to visit India and he made only stopovers in Afghanistan and Pakistan on his way to New Delhi and back to Washington.

Yet, he said, Mr Bush had enough time to play cricket with some students and meet representatives of some NGOs.

In India, Mr Fahim pointed out, the US president had held talks with opposition leaders, but in Pakistan he only “required the services of Gen Musharraf”.

He said Mr Bush’s remarks at the joint press conference with Gen Musharraf that there should be democracy in Pakistan had vindicated the opposition’s point of view that there was no democracy in the country.

He said the only positive aspect of Mr Bush’s visit was a call by him that elections in 2007 should be held in a free, fair and honest manner which “also proves the opposition’s viewpoint that the 2002 elections were rigged”.

He said there was consensus among the ARD leaders that free and fair elections were not possible under the present set-up. He said all elections held under the Musharraf regime had been rigged.

The ARD chairman called for fresh election in the country under an independent election commission and underlined the need for redefining powers of the chief election commissioner. “The CEC’s powers will have to be re-written as without it even angels cannot hold free and fair polls in the country.”

Answering a question, he said a caretaker government should be formed in consultation with all political parties to hold free and fair elections. Members of the caretaker set-up should not be allowed to contest the poll, he added.

He also called for laws to check interference of the army, police, etc., in the electoral process.