Word: zardari
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Gilani is not the only member of the new power elite who has a grudge against Musharraf. Asif Ali Zardari, who heads the populist PPP, which dominates the ruling coalition and got the most votes in the February 18 elections, blames Musharraf in part for the assassination of his wife, two-time Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto. Nawaz Sharif, the head of the Pakistan Muslim League, which was the second largest vote gainer, was deposed by Musharraf in 1999, and forced into exile...
...elder Zardari could not become Prime Minister himself; he was barred from running for parliament because of outstanding corruption charges. But a Pakistani court recently dismissed the last of those charges, opening the way for Zardari to contest a by-election, join parliament and perhaps become Prime Minister himself down the line. Some PPP insiders say he may prefer to continue as party leader, wielding power from behind the scenes; others believe Gilani's premiership will be short-lived and that Zardari will take over. Much will depend on how the PPP and its coalition partners fare in the coming...
Today's announcement was expected to be made by Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, the 19-year-old son of Benazir Bhutto, who was assassinated last December during campaigning for the parliamentary poll. Party officials said Bhutto Zardari was feeling unwell, but some observers speculate that his absence may have been a tack to spare him from answering questions about reported PPP infighting over the premiership. Bhutto Zardari is a student at Oxford, as his mother and politician grandfather were before him, and he became the co-chair of the PPP days after his mother's murder. But the young Bhutto Zardari...
...While there's always the chance that a new dispute could flare up, Pakistan's government-in-waiting is expected, when it is seated, to take a conciliatory and politically smart approach to its neighbor. Asif Ali Zardari, who took over the reins of the Pakistan People's Party after the assassination of his wife Benazir Bhutto in December, says that India and Pakistan should not be held "hostage" to the dispute over Kashmir, and that the two countries "can wait" to resolve their impasse at a later time. "That is a situation we can agree to disagree...
...President has dismissed such calls, but if Zardari and Sharif join forces with some smaller parties, Musharraf may not have a choice, short of a dramatic move, like dissolving parliament. "I am perceiving a rat-and-cat game," says Sheikh Rashid Ahmed, Musharraf's former Information Minister, who lost his seat after 30 years in government. "Musharraf wants to stay in government, whereas the parties are not ready to accept him." This clash of political wills promises a brutal test for Pakistan. If it can be resolved, Pakistan's transition to real democracy may have begun...