Running away from polls?

With the kindest blessings of Almighty Allah, we have, as a nation taken a step forward in the right direction as an important part of the transition from the military rule to complete civilian rule.
National and Provincial Assemblies have been dissolved on completion of their constitutional tenure of five years. The caretakers have been inducted at the national and provincial levels accordingly with prime responsibility of making all possible arrangements.
Credit for this welcome and pleasant development goes to President Pervez Musharraf. After elections are held, hopefully as repeatedly assured, in a free, fair and transparent manner this stage will be complete with power being transferred to a new government in Islamabad in a peaceful and harmonious manner.
However, strange things continue to happen every now and then in the beloved Motherland of ours. Opposition parties have all along been clamouring for holding of general election as soon as possible.
Now, that the general election are going to be held on or before January 9, 2008, some parties have started talking in terms of boycotting the polls on one pretext or the other.
This is just unfair as well as undemocratic. How, complete democracy is going to be restored if the general election are going to be boycotted by the same very parties who have been struggling and demanding democratic rule in the country.
Even before general elections are held, for which international observers from different world organisations would be in Pakistan, they are raising voices that the polls are not going to be free, fair and transparent if held with Pervez Musharraf at the helm of national affairs. How come?
Opposition parties are not contributing their due share in the on-going election process on one account or the other and still crying hoax about the foul play. In all fairness, if they want polls to be held in a free, fair, transparent manner in completely conducive atmosphere then they should also be making contributions towards this cherished objective. Sitting on the sideline and shouting foul play cannot be justified as a democratic move on their part at all.
If Pervez Musharraf is going to honour his oft-repeated commitment to hold polls in free, fair and transparent manner then why the opposition parties are trying to run away from the election arena without any valid and democratic justification. They should all actively and effectively take part in the general election, keep close vigil as what is happening here and there. Why start crying about some rigging or other allegations, if elections are yet to be held?