Several members of the National Assembly belonging to the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) have underscored that the impeachment move was aimed at removing vestiges of dictatorship and consolidating democracy in the country.
In separate interviews with APP by telephone, they also stressed that the entire party unitedly stands behind the PPP-led coalition's decision to impeach President Pervez Musharraf under Article 47 of the Constitution. The ruling coalition parties, which received mandate of the people in the general election to bring about a change, have sufficient parliament support to fulfil the aspirations of the masses, they contended.
"Where there is a will, there is a way. Hopefully, we will succeed in impeaching the President through constitutional means," senior PPP leader and MNA Nawab Yousuf Talpur said. "All PPP lawmakers unanimously support the decision of our party co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari. However, the process requires seriousness from all the political forces," the former minister said.
Talpur said he was in favour of simultaneous action for the president's impeachment and restoration of judges as believed that reinstatement of judges could be done through an executive order. Nawab Yousuf Talpur observed that opinion of Makhdoom Amin Fahim was basically an expression of grievance as he had not been involved in crucial decision making process. "Amin Fahim is not against any party decision and he has just wants the party to prioritise the issues," Talpur said.
MNA Nawab Khan Wasan said PPP has 125 members in the National Assembly while 91 seats are with the PML-N. The other coalition partners, ANP and MMA have 13 and seven members respectively while Fata members and other independent lawmakers would also support the motion, he said. Wasan said around 25 to 30 members of the National Assembly from the opposition PML-Q had contacted senior PPP leadership and offered their unconditional support for impeachment of the President.
"Close to 50 or half of the Senate members will also vote for the motion," he said, pointing out that a number of PML-Q senators were also expected to side with the coalition motion. "I think a substantial chunk of PML-Q members has realised sensitivity of the situation and that's why they are coming forward to support impeachment of the president for safeguarding democracy," Nawab Khan said.
He said Mian Manzoor Wattoo and his colleagues had already joined "our camp" and therefore, there should be no doubt about mustering more than the required number of votes. Parliamentary Secretary for Railways and PPP MNA from Sukkur, Nauman Islam Sheikh said PPP MNAs have unity among their ranks and there is no question of any division of opinion over the issue. "We have been advised by party leadership, to stay in Islamabad," Nauman revealed.
Mir Hazar Khan Bijarani said the number game was not a matter of concern for his party. He was confident the coalition motion would get more than the needed number of votes. However, Bijarani said it would be better for the President and the country if he himself steps down to avoid impeachment. "Constitutionally, the President is symbol of the Federation and when the federating units and democratic stakeholders have no trust in him then there is no logic for his stay," he remarked.
Most of the MNAs said PPP vice-chairman Makhdoom Amin Fahim's remarks that the time was not ripe for impeachment of the President was his personal opinion.
Hazar Khan Bijarani endorsed Talpur's opinion, saying that Amin Fahim wanted the government and party leadership to concentrate on resolving lay man's problems on priority basis.
Two MNAs elected on seats reserved for minorities and women, Shahbaz Bhatti and Shagufta Jumani respectively, emphasised that the time had come for PPP and its coalition partners to take the vital political step for the sake of the country's democratic future and progress.