Pakistan on brink of power-sharing deal, says ministerJames Orr and agencies
Thursday October 4, 2007
Guardian UnlimitedThe former Pakistan prime minister Benazir Bhutto (l), and the country's president, General Pervez Musharraf. Photographs: AFP/Getty ImagesPakistan is on the brink of a power-sharing agreement with former prime minister Benazir Bhutto, a cabinet minister said today.
The statement by Sheikh Rashid Ahmad, the minister for railways, came as Ms Bhutto revealed that the country's president, General Pervez Musharraf, was about to issue an amnesty which would quash corruption charges against her and others.
"Things are going in the right direction, as I have been saying for the past several days," Mr Ahmed said. "Wait for five or six hours, and everything will be clear by that time."
The expected amnesty has been a key demand of Ms Bhutto, who went into exile to avoid arrest in corruption cases registered by former prime minister Nawaz Sharif.
"I am hopeful that the national reconciliation ordinance will be promulgated today," Ms Bhutto told reporters in London, referring to the immunity edict.
The former leader has also been seeking a constitutional amendment that would allow her to seek the prime minister's job for the third time.
She aims to introduce a raft of measures that would help create a level playing field for parliamentary elections to be held in the country by January.
An agreement would head off a threatened mass resignation from parliament by Ms Bhutto's Pakistan People's party, just two days before Gen Musharraf seeks another five-year term in a vote by national and provincial MPs.
Guardian Unlimited ? Guardian News and Media Limited 2007