ISLAMABAD, Oct 9: President Gen Pervez Musharraf is expected to shortly meet politicians in a bid to convince them to give up their opposition to his military uniform.

Sources close to the president told Dawn here on Thursday that after the arrival of Prime Minister Mir Zafarullah Khan Jamali from the United States and PML President Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain from Germany, Gen Musharraf would tell them about his willingness to see politicians within this month.

The president believes that the prolonged deadlock with the opposition over the issue of Legal Framework Order (LFO) and his military uniform was not good for democracy and the present parliamentary system.

The president, the sources said, understands that the differences between the government and the opposition are not likely to be resolved in future and that he is now willing to meet politicians and convince them in one-to-one meetings to accept his “verbal assurances” about a timeframe for shedding his military uniform.

“The president says he has never been opposed to meeting with politicians and discussing with them all contentious issues,” a source said. Gen Musharraf may initially invite the Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal (MMA) for talks after consultation with the prime minister and Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain, he said.

The president, the sources said, is confident that he could persuade the politicians to accept him as the head of the state in uniform for some indefinite period keeping in view the regional and international situation.

Senator Muhammad Ali Durrani of the National Alliance told Dawn that some people had advised the president to meet the MMA leadership and other politicians to find out the terms of “settlement” of the issue.