LAHORE, Oct 8: The Alliance for Restoration of Democracy refused on Friday to wage a joint struggle in the company of the Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal against President Musharraf's uniform , saying the country would get nothing even if the two alliances succeeded in forcing the man to quit as army chief.
The "mother of all evils" which had disfigured the Constitution was the 17th Amendment and the two alliances should get together to strike it down, ARD Secretary General Iqbal Zafar Jhagra said at a news conference at the PDP Secretariat.
Jhagra said because of difference of opinion on the status of the 17th amendment, the ARD was not inviting the MMA to its Monday (Oct 11) Round Table Conference (RTC) to be held at the Lahore Press Club.
However, two of the six MMA components, JUI(S) and Markazi Jamiat Ahle Hadith, led by Maulana Samiul Haq and Professor Sajid Mir, respectively, would participate in the moot because they were in agreement with the ARD's standpoint.
The ARD secretary-general said the uniform was not the whole problem, instead it was only a part of the problem the ARD was struggling against. The controversial amendment, he said, had given sweeping powers to the president and his authority would not be dented even if he agreed to take off his uniform.
He said another difference of opinion between the ARD and the MMA was on the position of Gen Musharraf after the issue of the uniform was settled. He recalled that the religious alliance had declared in categorical terms that in case the general hung up his uniform, it would recognize him as a duly elected president. In comparison, he said, the ARD did not accept Gen Musharraf either as army chief or as president.
He said the ARD seriously and sincerely wanted that all opposition parties should get united, but it would not be possible unless they had identical views on the vital constitutional matters.
The RTC, Jhagra said, would be attended by some two dozen parties in addition to the 16 ARD components. Lawyers, journalists and people from other walks of life were also being invited.
Asked about Maulana Fazlur Rehman's reported claim that the MMA had set the Dec 31 deadline for Gen Musharraf to part with his uniform in consultation with the exiled former prime minister Mian Nawaz Sharif, the ARD leader said the assertion was off-base.
He said he had talked to Mr Sharif only a couple of days ago and was told in plain terms by the twice elected former premier that he would never agree to striking a deal on the 17th amendment.
Jhagra condemned the blasts in Multan and Sialkot, saying they might be a retaliation against the unjustified operations the government was carrying out in Wana and Balochistan.
"State terrorism is not the right way to counter terrorism", the ARD Leader said, underlining the need for change in the methodology to deal with the outlaws. He was also critical of the government decision to impose a ban on political and religious gatherings. He said such a step was violative of the fundamental rights.
Nawabzada Mansoor Khan, Naveed Chaudhry, Manzoor Gilani, Zaeem Qadri, Nawaz Gondal, Mian Asad Muhammad and Saifullah Saif were also present at the news conference.