Word: musharraf
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...before the polls, presiding Justice Javed Iqbal said that the election - which was to be held by an electoral college made up of the national and provincial assemblies - could take place as scheduled. However, it said that the winning candidate could not be named until the courts decide whether Musharraf is in fact an eligible candidate. According to the constitution, military officers are not allowed to run for political office. Thus, even though Musharraf, as expected, easily won the election on Saturday, it will not be until October 17, when a full court reconvenes to hear the petitions, that...
Pundits termed the ruling "satanically subtle" in instant text messages announcing the results of the controversy-laden trial. But the court may simply have been giving deference to a former Supreme Court Justice who not only brought the current case against Musharraf's eligibility but was actually running for the presidency himself. (Last week, the courts ruled in favor of Musharraf's nomination, dismissing three petitions against it on technical grounds...
...also be giving the other half of the drama time to play out. The Supreme Court's ambiguous yellow light means "absolutely nothing," says Ayesha Tammy Haq, a lawyer and prominent political talk show host. That's because she believes that a long rumored power-sharing deal between Musharraf and Bhutto, the self-exiled two-time Prime Minister who fled Pakistan in 1999 under still-unanswered charges of corruption, is still on. Indeed, Musharraf was not opposed by Bhutto's powerful Pakistan People's Party (PPP) during Saturday's vote: the PPP simply abstained from voting. With other opposition parties...
...with details of incremental moves in the negotiations between the two politicians with all the breathless enthusiasm of fans obsessed with the on-again, off-again love affair of protagonists in a daytime drama. IT'S A DONE DEAL exclaimed one newspaper. OPTIMISTIC, BUT NO AGREEMENT YET, says another. MUSHARRAF AND BB MAKE IT AT LAST, says a third. A popular e-mail going around shows a photograph of Musharraf and Bhutto doctored to look as if they are the happy couple at a traditional Pakistani wedding ceremony. The Supreme Court ruling is just the latest plot twist...
Shakespearian theatre this may be, but the political maneuverings of the capital Islamabad have import far beyond the Dunsinane-like nation of Pakistan. The U.S., which calls Musharraf its most important ally in the war on terror, has been quietly but forcefully pushing for a power sharing deal between the two politicians. Although Musharraf stood a good chance of winning the presidency without the PPP - his Pakistan Muslim League (Q) party has a slim majority in parliament - the tacit acquiescence of Bhutto's party lends the elections, and Musharraf's certain presidency, the democratic credentials necessary to garner continued international...