LAHORE, Nov 14: Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) chairperson Benazir Bhutto has stepped up her efforts to forge a united front of all opposition parties for a struggle to oust President Gen Pervez Musharraf who, she said on Wednesday, was the main obstacle to the restoration of democracy in the country.

“It’s time for (President Gen) Musharraf to go. There is a consensus among all opposition political parties at the moment that the general must step down to pave way for the return of democracy,” she told Dawn by telephone from the residence of PPP Senator Latif Khosa where she was detained recently for seven days.

In a major shift from her earlier stance, Ms Bhutto demanded, hours after detention orders were served on her, that President Musharraf must step down.

She also said that she would not work with him even if he quit his army post.

She established contacts with opposition politicians, including Nawaz Sharif, Qazi Hussain Ahmed, Asfandyar Wali and Hasil Bizenjo to persuade them to agree on a minimum common agenda of restoration of democracy and the Constitution and to launch a united struggle from one platform. About her contacts with other parties, she said: “I’ve spoken to Nawaz Sharif today on the subject and will contact him again tomorrow. I want to hear the views of all opposition leaders to define the minimum common agenda for political parties to rally round.”

She said she wanted to invite all opposition leaders to an interactive session over a cup of tea.

“I know most leaders are arrested and would not be able to come, but I want to have an interactive session so that we can learn from each other’s experiences and agree on a minimum common agenda of restoration of democracy and the rule of law.”

Ms Bhutto claimed that all political leaders she had spoken to were interested in getting together (for the purpose of discussing the common agenda for a united struggle). But she did not say if everyone was interested in uniting on one platform for launching a pro-democracy movement.

Asked about US Secretary of States Condoliza Rice’s statement that Ms Bhutto and Gen Musharraf could still work together and reports that Deputy Secretary of States John Negroponte might be visiting Pakistan for removing differences between her and the president, she said she had not read the full text of the statement and hence was not in a position to comment.