Government-PPP contacts hit stalemate

The months long contacts between President Pervez Musharraf's aides and Pakistan People's Party have hit a stalemate on the thorny uniform issue and early elections under an independent Election Commission. The aides also could not say yes to the party's demand that Benazir Bhutto and Nawaz Sharif be allowed to return and participate in 2005 elections, sources revealed to Business Recorder here on Thursday.
Party sources said that the party was perturbed over a chain of recent news, indicating a deal had been clinched between the two sides under "new rules of the game". President Musharraf has been consistently expressing his desire for reconciliation with all the political forces. However, he has declined to concede to PPP demands or preconditions on this count.
A flurry of contacts was witnessed immediately after President Musharraf's decision to retain both the slots of president and the army chief beyond December 31. However, these have produced no flexibility in the stances of both sides, the sources maintained.
A veteran party leader from Sindh, who did not want to be named, said that PPP could not afford to discard its decades old stance on democracy and 1973 Constitution come what may.
"The party has gained tremendously ever-since General Musharraf sent PML government packing and is in a position to sweep elections," he claimed, adding that Musharraf might be in need of PPP, but the party was not.
He said that the party leadership would never like Benazir Bhutto and Asif Zardari's sacrifices for democracy under any circumstances whatsoever. "Musharraf does realise that the ruling Pakistan Muslim League is shaky. It is like sand slipping out of your fist and you simply can't help it. Therefore, for the first time, he is seriously looking towards the opposition, more precisely towards PPP for his own survival," he pointed out.
Senator Farhatullah Khan Babar, the party's spokesman, when contacted confirmed that the government-PPP contacts were deadlocked. "You may call it a deal or reconciliation, but we want election under an independent Election Commission this year, return of leading politicians to the country and General Musharraf stepping down from both the slots," he explained. He saw the reports about Musharraf-PPP deal, part of a conspiracy to trigger confusion and uncertainty among the opposition parties and to impede their bid for formation of a grand anti-Musharraf alliance.
When asked, would PPP support Musharraf if he runs for presidential election after announcing mid-term polls, he said that the party could consider the option in consultation with other like-minded forces.
On the contrary, President Musharraf has asserted that 2007 would be the election year, ruling out the possibility of early polls or even shedding his military outfit before that.
The senator said that it had been indirectly conveyed to the party leadership that none of its conditions were acceptable to President General Musharraf. After the 'no', the party will be focussing on a collective countrywide campaign against the rulers. However, he made it clear that Musharraf would have to concede, if he wanted reconciliation with PPP.
Party sources said that because of inflexibility on the part of Musharraf, PPP top cadre recently gave a go-ahead to the local leadership to try to rope in the Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal (MMA).