Bhutto upbeat over power-sharing

ISLAMABAD – A breakthrough in power-sharing talks between President General Pervez Musharraf and former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto appeared imminent yesterday, both sides said.

Railways Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed, who is close to Musharraf, said an announcement of an agreement – expected to include the dropping of corruption charges against Bhutto – would come within hours. A senior official from Bhutto’s party in London also said there will be an agreement.Neither side provided further details.The Bhutto aide spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to reveal the deal’s substance ahead of the formal announcement.”Things are going in the right direction, as I have been saying for the past several days,” Ahmed said.”Wait for five or six hours, and everything will be clear by that time.”Bhutto told reporters in London that she expected the government to issue an “ordinance” quashing corruption cases against her and others – one of her key demands.”Now we have to see what developments happen today,” she told reporters in London.Bhutto went into exile eight years ago to avoid arrest on corruption cases registered by another exiled former leader, Nawaz Sharif.She also has been seeking a constitutional amendment that would allow her to seek the prime minister’s job for the third time and other measures to create a level playing field for parliamentary elections due by January.An agreement would head off a threatened mass resignation from Parliament by her Pakistan People’s Party just two days before Musharraf seeks another five-year term in a vote by national and provincial lawmakers.Musharraf is expected to win, assuming his lawyers can fend off last-ditch legal challenges to his candidacy.An opposition lawyer urged the Supreme Court yesterday to postpone the election to give the judges time to consider Musharraf’s contested eligibility.The court adjourned until Friday without a decision.A deal between the government and Bhutto would set back hard-liners in Musharraf’s ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Q party who had opposed an amnesty, or any concessions to the woman they consider their biggest political foe.Party chairman Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain said Wednesday that a broad amnesty would make politicians look like ‘thieves joining hands to rescue each other’.It would also enrage Musharraf’s die-hard opponents.Nampa-APA senior official from Bhutto’s party in London also said there will be an agreement.Neither side provided further details.The Bhutto aide spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to reveal the deal’s substance ahead of the formal announcement.”Things are going in the right direction, as I have been saying for the past several days,” Ahmed said.”Wait for five or six hours, and everything will be clear by that time.”Bhutto told reporters in London that she expected the government to issue an “ordinance” quashing corruption cases against her and others – one of her key demands.”Now we have to see what developments happen today,” she told reporters in London.Bhutto went into exile eight years ago to avoid arrest on corruption cases registered by another exiled former leader, Nawaz Sharif.She also has been seeking a constitutional amendment that would allow her to seek the prime minister’s job for the third time and other measures to create a level playing field for parliamentary elections due by January.An agreement would head off a threatened mass resignation from Parliament by her Pakistan People’s Party just two days before Musharraf seeks another five-year term in a vote by national and provincial lawmakers.Musharraf is expected to win, assuming his lawyers can fend off last-ditch legal challenges to his candidacy.An opposition lawyer urged the Supreme Court yesterday to postpone the election to give the judges time to consider Musharraf’s contested eligibility.The court adjourned until Friday without a decision.A deal between the government and Bhutto would set back hard-liners in Musharraf’s ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Q party who had opposed an amnesty, or any concessions to the woman they consider their biggest political foe.Party chairman Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain said Wednesday that a broad amnesty would make politicians look like ‘thieves joining hands to rescue each other’.It would also enrage Musharraf’s die-hard opponents.Nampa-AP