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Monday, March 16, 2009
Taseer, Malik and Fazl lead Zardari astray
By Hamid Mir
ISLAMABAD: President Asif Ali Zardari is now angry with his close aides who pushed him into a dead political end.
People like Salmaan Taseer, Rehman Malik and Maulana Fazlur Rehman assured him many a time that Nawaz Sharif could not attract the public to the roads and the government should not show flexibility on the restoration of the deposed judges. These advisers even told Zardari that he should not think about implementing the Charter of Democracy because its implementation would weaken his own constitutional powers.
Zardari even refused to listen not only to Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani but also to some foreign dignitaries, who advised him to resolve the crisis by reinstating the deposed judges through an executive order.
Governor Punjab Salmaan Taseer played a key role in destroying the political image of the federal government. He provided wrong information and assessments to Zardari about his talks with the PML-Q. He assured Zardari that the PML-Q was ready to form a coalition government with the PPP in the Punjab and he would also muster the support of, at least, 18 turncoats of the PML-N from the Punjab Assembly.
He was proven wrong. The PML-Q never took a clear position to form an alliance with the PPP and just one day before the long march, they said sorry to Salmaan Taseer. After this big political failure, Zardari tried to scare Nawaz Sharif by issuing some security alerts. Zardari was confident that Nawaz Sharif would not dare to come on the roads himself. His government informed him about the threat of “suicide bombers” again and again but Nawaz Sharif never listened to these threats.
As a last resort, Zardari tried to use the American pressure. It was surprising for Zardari that some top US government officials never used any “pressure” on Nawaz Sharif and they just tried to mediate.
Top US government functionaries tried their level best to prevent the PML-N Quaid Nawaz Sharif from coming out on the roads but they failed. US President’s Special Envoy Richard Holbrooke spoke to Nawaz Sharif twice last week and offered his services for mediation with Asif Ali Zardari but the PML-N Quaid never encouraged him.
Nawaz Shrif told this scribe that he did not want the Army and the US to interfere in the political affairs of the country and that was why he ignored the offer of the American envoy, but in a polite and friendly way.
Nawaz Sharif is confident that March 16 will change the history of Pakistan not through foreign forces and the Army but by the peopleís power and he is determined to spend at least seven days under the open sky in front of the President House in Islamabad.
Finally, it was the US Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton, who tried that Nawaz Sharif should not come on the roads for the restoration of the deposed judges. She assured Nawaz Sharif that the government of Pakistan would file a review petition in the Supreme Court against the disqualification of the Sharif brothers, governorís rule in the Punjab would be removed and the deposed judges would also be restored if Nawaz Sharif started a dialogue with Zardari.
The PML-N Quaid simply informed Hilary Clinton that he had signed written agreements with Zardari three times in the last one year and he could not trust him anymore. Nawaz Sharif made it clear to her that he was not interested in his disqualification and he would start talking to Zardari only after the restoration of the deposed judges.
Hilary Clinton informed President Zardari about the condition of Nawaz Sharif but Zardari only issued a vague press release on Friday night without taking any clear position. He simply missed a great chance for the resolution of the crisis.
Prime Minister Gilani has now advised Zardari to remove the governor Punjab immediately and say yes to the restoration of the deposed judges or the movement for the restoration of the deposed judges may turn into a “go Zardari go” movement.
March 16th will be the last day for Zardari to save his office from an angry mass movement. It is sad that some personal friends are advising him to use the Sindh card against Nawaz Sharif but Prime Minister Gilani is opposed to this advice.
He thinks that no PPP minister from the Punjab has resigned at this crucial stage. Two ministers from Sindh resigned against the policies of Zardari and it is now time to rescue the credibility of the government by taking some good decisions.
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CJ says good governance being compromised
By Sohail Khan
ISLAMABAD: Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry said on Tuesday that good governance is being compromised as it is believed that the administration of justice is the sole duty of courts or the legal fratern more |
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Hakimullah dies of wounds in Multan?
By Mushtaq Yusufzai
PESHAWAR: Reports about the death of Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) chief Hakimullah Mehsud once again started circulating on Tuesday and this time it was being reported that the militant commander had succumb more |
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MNAs seek solution to Sindh-Punjab water rift
ISLAMABAD: Members of the National Assembly on Tuesday urged for the resolution of the water crisis between Punjab and Sindh, failing which would lead to serious repercussions for the country.
Yousuf Tal more |
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Good governance hinges on change in national behaviour: PM
By our correspondent
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani has said that change in the collective behaviour of the nation is necessary for the promotion of good governance. He said that his government believed in streng more |
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NIC made mandatory to get sugar from USC outlets
ISLAMABAD: The Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of the cabinet on Tuesday made it mandatory to produce national identity cards to get a pack of 2kg sugar from the USC outlets.
The ECC met here unde more |
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Three provinces to hold LG polls in four months
By Hanif Khalid & Asim Yasin
ISLAMABAD: A high level meeting here on Tuesday at the Aiwan-e-Sadr decided that the chief ministers of Sindh, NWFP and Balochistan would hold local government elections in four months.
President Asif Al more |
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Senators condemn attack on Sh Rashid
By our correspondent
ISLAMABAD: Senators on Tuesday strongly condemned the murder attempt on Awami Muslim League (AML) chief Sheikh Rashid Ahmed. Meanwhile, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) members advised Sheikh Rashid to stop more |
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PIA obliges religiously; latest being religious minister
By Rauf Klasra
ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan International Airlines (PIA), facing a mind-boggling loss of about Rs70billion, has quietly upgraded two seats of Federal Minister for Religious Affairs Hamid Saeed Kazmi and his wife fr more |
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A brigadier without brigade has a history of thrashing
By Umar Cheema
ISLAMABAD: The basher-brigadier of the National University of Modern Languages (NUML), who assaulted his professor colleague late Thursday, has a long list of such incidents on his credit as his resume is sprin more |
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PAC settles drought money misuse
By Rauf Klasra
ISLAMABAD: A special committee of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) probing misuse of drought funds worth million of rupees on Tuesday conveniently settled majority of charges against deputy auditor general o more |
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NA-55 by-polls
By our correspondent
LAHORE: Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) President Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain has urged all the political parties, including the PML-N, to withdraw from the NA-55 by-polls in favour of Sheikh Rashid.
“ more |
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Point scoring be avoided in Rashid attack case: Shahbaz
By our correspondent
LAHORE: Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif said the Rawalpindi incident on Monday had grieved every Pakistani.
He said a joint investigation team comprising federal and provincial agencies including I more |
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SC moved against delay in judges’ appointment
By our correspondent
ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court was moved on Tuesday against the government’s delay in the appointment of judges in the apex court and was prayed for directing the government to perform its constitutional duty by more |
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‘74 killed in Bajaur operation’
By Hasbanullah Khan
KHAR: Security forces claimed to have killed 74 militants and injured 54 others and wrested the strategically important hilltops and areas from the insurgents during the weeklong military operation in the Mamon more |
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Afghan unrest kills US, French soldiers
KABUL: A US and French soldiers were killed in attacks in southern and eastern Afghanistan on Tuesday, the alliance said.
The US service member was killed in an improvised bomb blast in southern Afghanis more |
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Army called in for today’s Lakki by-election
By our correspondent
PESHAWAR: The government has requisitioned the services of the Pakistan Army to augment the police and civil security forces for conducting the NWFP Assembly by-election on PF-75 Lakki Marwat for which polling more |
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Meeting discusses political issues
ISLAMABAD: A meeting held here at the presidency on Tuesday and presided over jointly by President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani discussed political and development issues in the N more |
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Rashid accuses PML-N of promoting criminal culture
ISLAMABAD: Head of Awami Muslim League, Sheikh Rashid, on Tuesday criticised the PML-N-led Punjab government for promoting criminal culture in Rawalpindi and the province.
Talking to a private TV channel more |
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Briefs...
Over 64 dead in Afghan avalanches
KABUL: At least 24 bodies have been recovered and 40 other people are feared dead after avalanches swept vehicles into a ravine and trapped cars in a mountain pass overn more |
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ISSN 1563-9479 
