ISLAMABAD, July 26: The gulf between the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) and the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) seems to be widening with both the major components of the Alliance for the Restoration of Democracy (ARD) accusing each other of violating the Charter of Democracy (CoD) and maintaining contacts with the military regime.
Some PML-N leaders had been criticising the PPP for maintaining contacts with the regime. The PPP did not deny them, saying that it had been talking to the government for a ‘facilitated transfer to democracy’. But now, for the first time, the PPP has come out with an accusation that PML-N was in secret contacts with the Musharraf regime.
Talking to newsmen here on Thursday, People’s Party Parliamentarians Secretary-General Raja Pervez Ashraf asked the PML-N leadership to explain its secret contacts with the present military regime.
He said that PML-N leaders had been criticising the PPP for keeping contacts with the military regime. The PPP had many times said that it has not reached an agreement with Gen Musharraf due to differences over the post of the Chief of Army Staff and his re-election from the present assemblies.
He said the PML-N leaders during the Multi-Party Conference in London had denied any contacts with the regime.
He, however, said Shahbaz Sharif in an interview with a private TV channel had admitted to contacts with the government as he (Shahbaz) asked Gen Musharraf to heed the advice of the mediator. He claimed that those negotiating from the PML-N side with a senior military official included former federal ministers Ishaq Dar, Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan and former chief of Ehtisab Bureau Saifur Rehman.
He said the PPP wanted an explanation as to whether the All Parties Democratic Movement (APDM), which included the MMA, had been formed to please the military regime by weakening the ARD.
He said the PML-N was also trying to bring in foreign governments to assure good behaviour from the PML-N side and in this connection former NAB chief Saifur Rehman’s contacts in Qatar as well as PML-N contacts in the Saudi Arabia were well-known by now.
He said instead of demanding a facilitation of democracy, the PML-N aides mainly demanded the return to the country of Nawaz Sharif before that of PPP chairperson Benazir Bhutto. Citing media reports, he said the Sharif brothers had also asked the establishment to reduce the exile period of Nawaz Sharif and his family members.
He claimed that the Sharif brothers were asking for pardon for the 10-year exile so that they could come back and oppose the PPP as the establishment representatives. The Sharif brothers were presenting themselves as a countervailing force to the establishment to counter the PPP. This was why they were in a hurry to form the APDM to demonstrate that they could counter the PPP.
Talking to newsmen, PML-N Information Secretary Ahsan Iqbal termed the assertion that PML-N was also talking to the establishment absurd and said it was like the pot calling the kettle black.
He said the entire country knew that PPP chairperson Benazir Bhutto had on several occasions admitted before domestic and international media that she was negotiating with Gen Musharraf and seeking an understanding with him while the PML-N and its leadership had maintained the principled position from October 12, 1999 that Gen Musharraf was an unconstitutional ruler who overthrew an elected government through an extra-constitutional step and therefore there could be no understanding with him.
He said statements made by Benazir had been a source of great embarrassment for PPP workers and local leaders, who were not in favour of a deal with Gen Musharraf. Therefore, to satisfy them the PPP leadership had resorted to a baseless attack on the PML-N, the critics of whom even acknowledge that it was one party which had maintained a steady and stable position throughout the past seven years.
He said Shahbaz Sharif has on different occasions categorically stated that he fully supports the political ideals of Nawaz Sharif. Gen Musharraf offered the PML-N a deal on gold platter before 2002 election but Nawaz Sharif rejected this offer because he believes that in order to become Pakistan a stable democracy the involvement of military from politics must be stopped for all times.
He said the PML-N has not only taken a principled stand on not talking with Gen Musharraf but also decided not to accept turncoats while the PPP has opened floodgates for accepting political turncoats. The PML-N has only one deal which is with the people of Pakistan to win their right of self- governance from the military dictator. He said the PPP’s assertion that the All Parties Democratic Movement (APDM) was formed to start negotiations with the military was a joke as the objective behind the creation of the APDM was to start a public mobilisation campaign for the ouster of Gen Musharraf and the PPP refused to be part of any such campaign.
Not only that while the entire country demanded Gen Musharraf’s resignation after the Supreme Court verdict, PPP chairperson Benazir Bhutto even refused to demand his resignation.
Ahsan Iqbal said in the London APC all opposition parties agreed to resign from the assemblies in case Gen Musharraf decided to re-elect himself from the present assemblies for the second tenure a president, but the PPP even refused to make this commitment yet, it has the audacity to make accusations on the PML-N.
