Sharif says ruling PPP extension of previous govt

Rezaul H. Laskar

Islamabad, Aug 30 (PTI) Days after he pulled out of the
ruling coalition, Nawaz Sharif Saturday lashed out at the
Pakistan People's Party for "blatantly" violating agreements
and dubbed the administration led by it as an "extension" of
the previous government.

Reflecting the growing rift between the Pakistan Muslim
League-Nawaz and P.P.P., Sharif said "I feel let down.
Dismayed, disappointed."

"I never thought one can violate agreements so
blatantly...it was a shock," said the P.M.L.-N. chief, who has
accused P.P.P. co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari of reneging on
several agreements to reinstate 60 judges deposed by former
President Pervez Musharraf during emergency rule last year.

Sharif has rebuffed pleas by Zardari to withdraw the
P.M.L.-N. presidential nominee for the September six elections
and rejoin the government. Zardari, the P.P.P. candidate, is
the front-runner in the triangular contest with pro-Musharraf
P.M.L.-Qaid-e-Azam also in the fray.

Getting rid of a 'dictator' was not the only aim of the
coalition the P.M.L.-N. had formed with the Pakistan People's
Party, Sharif, whose party pulled out of the government on
Monday, said in an interview to a Pakistani daily.

The current administration appeared to be "an extension
of the previous government" led by the opposition P.M.L.-Q.,
Sharif told The News daily. The government's performance has
been "a great disappointment", he added.

Attempts by Zardari to assuage his estranged ally
through a public apology bore no fruit with Sharif sticking
to his demand of immediate reinstatement of the sacked judges.

Sharif said he had "no choice" but to walk out of the
ruling coalition after it failed to restore the deposed
judges.

"The coalition came into being over certain common
objectives and we gave our coalition partner a lot of time
even though we knew that some people had started criticising
us and saying we had got into some underhand deal with the
P.P.P.," he remarked.

Asked about the implications of his move for the
P.M.L.-N.'s government in Punjab province, Sharif said: "I
believe that we should not be aiming to throw out their
(P.P.P.'s) government in the centre nor they should try to
destabilise the P.M.L.-N. government in the Punjab.

"It is in the interest of the country that democracy is
protected and state institutions not harmed further to keep
those forces at bay that are always itching to interfere.

Zardari, P.M.L.-N. nominee Saeed-uz Zaman Siddiqui and
P.M.L.-Q.'s Mushahid Hussain Sayed will be the three
candidates contesting the elections following the withdrawal
of nomination papers by the covering candidates.

With Saturday being the last day of withdrawal of
nominations, Faryal Talpur, Zardari's sister who was his
covering candidate, opted out.

She claimed Zardari, the co-Chairman of the ruling
P.P.P., is in a strong position and will win the election. "We
have comfortable numbers to win the presidential election."

P.M.L.-N.'s overing candidate Roedad Khan also pulled
out of the race.