September 02, 2008	Tuesday	Ramazan 1, 1429

ISLAMABAD, Sept 1: Pakistan People’s Party’s co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari has said that his party faces the real test of coping with internal and external challenges after the presidential election.

Speaking at a dinner hosted by Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani at the PM House on Monday, Mr Zardari said he was trying to change the system as PPP founder Z.A. Bhutto and his daughter Benazir

Bhutto would have “wanted us to do”.

He said: “We want to take all political forces along in our quest for national success … We are supported in our efforts by almost all political parties except for some ‘friends’ who need more political maturity.”

Praising Muttahida Qaumi Movement’s chief Altaf Hussain, who had proposed his name for the office of president, he said that it testified to his political acumen.

The PPP leader also praised political stalwarts like Maulana Fazlur Rahman, Senator Israrullah Zehri and Asfandyar Wali Khan who, he said, had fully supported him.

Describing Jamaat-i-Islami chief’s ‘muted endorsement’ a sign of political maturity, he said: “Even Qazi Hussain Ahmed has said today that he will accept me as president if I am elected by a majority vote.”

He said: “Our politics is aimed at saving Pakistan from disintegration … and not only that: We have to put it back on the path of economic progress.”

He said some people had raised the bogey of tribal militants and saying that Peshawar was likely to be taken over by them, “but we stopped it”. He also mentioned rumours about secession of Balochistan which “we halted through political engagement, although we have to do much more in that direction”.

Without directly naming the PML-N, he said: “We are waiting for our friends to understand the nature of politics which enabled us to send a general and a dictator home”.

He said: “I ask our friends to realise the gravity of the situation. Any misstep now will plunge the country into chaos and that would mean suffering for 180 million Pakistanis.”

Mr Zardari said Pakistan had supported the Afghan people and also Iran in times of turmoil and it was able to do so because it was strong internally. “But God forbid if the country is weak it will not be able to save itself, leave alone supporting others.”