PAKISTAN: Pakistan President Musharraf is seeking a re-election even though his popularity has been sliding

The Pakistani Election Commission announced on Thursday (September 20) that President Pervez Musharraf will seek his re-election on October 6, despite legal challenges in the Supreme Court and slumping popularity. General Musharraf, who came to power in a coup eight years ago had said he will retire from the army if elected, but opposition parties are seeking to block his plan. "The Chief Election Commissioner will receive the nomination paper on 27th September, and scrutiny will be conducted on 29th September. And the election will be held on 6th October," said Kanwar Muhammad Dilshad, spokesman for the Election Commission. The Supreme Court is hearing a set of petitions challenging Musharraf's right to retain his dual role, the legality of being elected while in uniform, and whether he should be allowed to get a mandate from the sitting assemblies before they are dissolved for a general election due by mid-January. Immediately after the announcement of the schedule, Musharraf's opponents accused the president of trying to flout the constitution through the Election Commission. "We believe that the announcement of the presidential elections schedule before the decision of the the Supreme Court is an attempt to influence the decision of the court. The APDM (All Parties Democratic Movement) forum has decided that the day Pervez Musharraf's nomination papers are accepted, with or without uniform, all parties belonging to the APDM will resign from the National Assembly as well as the Provincial assemblies," Qazi Hussain Ahmed, chief of the Jamaat-e-Islami, told journalists outside the Supreme Court. In Pakistan, members of the parliament -- National Assembly and Senate -- as well as those from the four provincial assemblies elect the president. Famous cricketer turned politician Imran Khan whose small party has also filed a petition against Musharraf in the apex court, said the opposition would not allow the president to illegally bulldoze through his re-election. "We will challenge him in every way; in the streets, in the Election Commission, if need be, even once again in the Supreme Court," Khan told reporters. Musharraf's current tenure is due to expire on November 15, and his top legal aide has told the court that he will be sworn in as a civilian leader if he is given a fresh five-year mandate. The decision of the court is crucial for Musharraf's political future as analysts say he might impose emergency rule if a court blocked his move to get re-elected. But some Pakistanis, bitter at what they consider Musharraf's pro-America policies, do not want Musharraf running the country any more. Shehzad Durrani, a young electrical engineer who has left his village in the tribal areas for security reasons, said perhaps a new government would change things in his troubled region and he could go back to his village in the rugged mountains bordering Afghanistan. "He (Musharraf) cares only for himself; he can see nothing beyond that. He has destroyed the country, and especially our Northern Province and North Waziristan, for the sake of this war on terrorism and his own self projection. That is why we cannot tolerate him," Durrani said. Musharraf derives most of his support from the army, while a loose collection of politicians brought under his banner after the 1999 coup has shown signs of disunity. But quite a few Pakistanis still believe the beleaguered president is the man their country needs at this point in time. "I feel that he should be elected as president, because his tenure has been a great tenure. As compared to all other governments that came before him, Pakistan has made tremendous progress during his time," said handicrafts dealer Mohammad Zaheer. "I love president Pervez Musharraf. I'm going to vote for him, I've never voted in my life," said housewife Sophia Bano, as she sifted through piles of sandals on sale on a market stall. "I feel he was the right president for this country; I want him to stay back." she added. Musharraf's allies enjoy simple majority needed to elect the president, but they are expected to be in minority after the general election, unless new friends are found. Musharraf, who has seen his popularity eroded since he tried to sack the Supreme Court chief justice last March, is trying to shore up his position by forging a power-sharing pact with former prime minister Benazir Bhutto, head of largest political party.

ITN Source | September 20, 2007

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