ISLAMABAD, June 20: Prime Minister Mir Zafarullah Jamali has blamed the 'decadent ruling elite' for destabilizing the system "just because a particular group feels that it's out of the power loop".

In an exclusive chat in his chambers in parliament on Sunday, the prime minister explained the genesis of what he called "the engineered political crisis that has no basis at all".

He talked about his relationship with President Pervez Musharraf, the 'now-hot-now-cold bond' with the Chaudhrys of Gujrat and the violence in Karachi. Mr Jamali had a piece of advice for the players vying for the top slot.

He said he intended to initiate a more proactive role after the budget, which would include not just the cabinet expansion but also "reshuffling and replacement of some ministers".

But it was his analysis of the political state of affairs that sounded different, almost intellectual, from the earlier accounts. He saw a pattern to this instability, which was seen during all governments after 1985.

"The ruling elite, particularly the powerful movers and shakers in the capital, loves to play this game. They try to jump on the bandwagon of every government, no matter what its affiliation, bent or constitution.

It's a matter of their survival. But naturally one group gets in and the other is left out. Those left out then start to dislodge the ones in power." The prime minister, who has lost considerable weight in the last few weeks, said that the average time for such instability to take roots has been two years in the last 20 years.

"This last phase usually sees strangest bedfellows sleeping together, arch political rivals joining hands. This has nothing to do with politics but with their vested interests," he said.

"They usually find some Humayun Akhtar of the day who promises them everything under the sun. A coffee shop of a five-star hotel in the capital gets active and you find the same old crowd of rumour-mongers in the local drawing rooms."

But he was confident that the climax of his story was going to be different from earlier stories. "What makes the present situation different is that there is no corruption case against me, there is no charge-sheet.

And there are no long marches or dharnas out there. It's a unique situation in the country's history where the entire opposition is supporting me. Maulana Fazlur Rehman is on my side, Qazi (Hussain Ahmad) Saheb is with me.

Even PPP and PML-N leaders come to me in private to express their support. So where is the crisis," he asked, and said: "It's just in the drawing rooms (of people) whose dukaandaari (business) has come to a halt."

Mr Jamali was extra careful in not saying anything against the president. He went overboard in explaining that he enjoyed the support of the president, saying that in his last meeting, the president had specifically asked him "to get everybody together" and "to make things work".

He said he was doing his best. "Soon you will see the same gloomsters writing about the achievements of my two-year government." When pressed on what some sections call an attempt by the presidential camp to let the uncertainty linger on, he said: "I support the president not just because he is the president but also because the country needs him; otherwise we could have the ghosts of Iraq haunting this region as well."

He said he was absolutely clear that political stability was "good for the president, good for the government and mind you good for the Chaudhrys. And, of course, for the country."

His peace of advice for "rumour-mongers instigating MNAs and ministers" was that "they should think twice before becoming scapegoats. Politics of this country needs change through evolution and not revolution". He said every system should be given a fair chance for application.

There was a hint of suggestion when he said that "some replacements in the cabinet are urgently required." The prime minister said he would finalize the whole thing shortly after consultations with party colleagues and allies.

He said he had asked Chaudhry Shujaat to furnish his proposed names so that we could "overhaul the cabinet". About his proactive role, he had many policy initiatives up his sleeves, which would be fired in the next few weeks.

"Some of them are on education, others on housing, employment and health. We have a major initiative planned on alternate energy, which is going to resolve the country's energy crisis. It may also be an alternative to political controversies on water and energy distribution."

He said he planned to lead the question-answer in parliament the same way as it was done in the British parliament. Mr Jamali was particularly concerned over the law and order situation in Karachi.

He said in the days to come he would personally look into even minor issues relating to the crisis in Karachi. "We have several initiatives on Karachi which would be announced shortly to improve the situation in Karachi."