KARACHI, Jan 24: Leader of the Pakistan Tehrik-i-Insaf, Imran Khan, said here on Thursday a change after the general election in October this year would be more of a partnership with President General Pervez Musharraf rather than a transfer of power to politicians.

“Now that President Musharraf has declared that he would be around for the next four or five years, he would seek partnership with someone who shares his ideals,” Mr Khan told a gathering of business executives and managers at a meeting organized by the Management Association of Pakistan (MAP).

The PTI chief chose the MAP forum to declare that he and his party were serious about participating in the next elections at the national level and targeting the post of highest executive office in the country.

“We will soon make our manifesto public,” he announced claiming that “it will be an implementable document which will reflect the hard work of our party.”

Responding to questions from business professionals, Mr Khan gave broad outlines of his foreign policy with particular reference to relations with India. “Our policy will be to continue dialogue with India on the outstanding disputes.”

He said the Pakistan government should have conveyed the deep anger and anguish of the people of Pakistan over the USA bombing on the Afghan people. The PTI leader was of the view that the leaders who were the target of USA bombing had simply disappeared. “They may reappear and attack the US in the next few years,” he warned.

He said Israeli excesses on Palestinians were creating hatred in the Muslim world against Israel and the USA.

“There should be an international debate on terrorism and the state terrorism of Israel should be explained,” he said.

“You will see our second line of leadership when electioneering picks up,” he remarked when one of the participants asked if Mr Khan was the only leader of the PTI.

He demanded more electoral reforms.

At the outset, Mr Khan spoke on the quality of leadership who he pointed out should be an embodiment of what he preached and expect from his followers. Lee Kuan Yeu of Singapore and Mahathir of Malaysia, he said, were the two leaders who infused immense confidence in their followers and made their countries models of self-reliance.

Dilating on the potential resources available to Pakistan, he said there were 3.8 million registered Pakistan expatriates abroad from whom “we receive hardly 700 to 800 million dollars remittance a year. Compare it with the Philippines which receives 7 to 8 billion dollars every year from 3.4 million registered expatriate Filipinos abroad.”

Education, judiciary and elimination of corruption were on top of the party agenda, Mr Khan said.

The PTI leader came down heavily on the judiciary which, he said, had miserably failed to provide protection to the people. He called for a deeper study of the jirga and panchayat systems practised in this part of the world for centuries.