The ruling Pakistan People's Party on Saturday unveiled a package of sweeping constitutional reforms aimed at curbing President Pervez Musharraf's powers, including those of dissolving parliament and appointing the chiefs of the armed forces.
The package will be presented to the PPP's coalition partners before being tabled in the parliament, PPP Chairman Asif Ali Zardari told a news conference, after a meeting of the party's central executive committee approved it.
The party, however, remained mum on reinstating judges sacked by Musharraf during emergency last year, an issue that has strained ties with coalition partner Nawaz Sharif's Pakistan Muslim League N, which quit the cabinet early this month.
However, Zardari indicated that measures to reinstate the judges would be decided after talks with lawyers agitating on the issue. He said the PPP would also hold a dialogue with the lawyers' movement, which plans to launch a series of protests from June 10 on the issue.
In yet another stinging attack on beleaguered President, who was recently described by him as a relic of the past, Zardari said, "The PPP had never accepted General Musharraf as the Constitutional President".
Despite this, the PPP will hold a dialogue with the Presidency on the proposed reforms, he said, adding, "The PPP does things through dialogue. The ultimate power of democracy comes from dialogue and not confrontation."
He, however, added, "Dictatorship and democratic forces cannot work together".
Asked if the PPP planned to impeach the President, Zardari replied: "We intend to walk him (Musharraf) away rather than impeach him."
Once the constitutional amendments are passed by parliament, the President's powers under Article 58(2b) of the constitution to dissolve parliament and dismiss the Prime Minister will go, Zardari said.
The President will also lose his powers to appoint the chiefs of the three services, he said.
Zardari said Law Minister Farooq Naek, who prepared the package along with legal experts, will now hold talks with leaders of coalition partners PML-N and the Awami National Party and other parties like the MQM to get their backing for the package.
Though the PPP has a working relationship with Musharraf, the President had so far not sought any indemnity from the new government for his actions during last year's emergency rule, he said.
Noting that it might be too early to talk about indemnity, Zardari said: "He doesn't want (indemnity), he hasn't asked for it. So we can only do that if somebody wants it. But who knows what tomorrow brings?"
Zardari did not say how the PPP expects to pass the amendments in parliament as the party and its allies do not have a majority in the Senate or the upper house of the parliament.
"There will be pressure from the media and people. The bill will be presented in the Senate and National Assembly," he said.
"We have a majority in the National Assembly and provincial assemblies, they will pass the resolutions and then I will request Senators for a dialogue."
Outlining the salient features of the 62-point package, Law Minister Naek said Article 6 of the constitution would be amended so that judges who validated the suspension or abrogation of the constitution could be charged with committing 'high treason'. Such judges will be deemed to have violated their oath of office.
The amendments will also bar anyone from becoming President for more than two terms and ensure that provincial governors are appointed by the President on the advice of the Prime Minister. Currently, the President only consults the premier on gubernatorial appointments.
Minorities will be given five more seats in the Senate and provisions for setting up caretaker governments will be changed. The name of the North West Frontier Province will also be changed to Pakhtunkhwa, Naek said.
"We want to make parliament supreme. We want to give back to the Prime Minister all the powers of the President contained in the constitution," Naek said.
Zardari said that the PPP would take revenge for his wife, former premier Benazir Bhutto's assassination, by changing the system. "One aspect of this is that we want to strengthen democracy, make parliament sovereign and give people the real power," he said.
He also defended the PPP-led government's decision to ask the United Nations to probe Bhutto's killing.
Zardari also made it clear that he would not be influenced by pressure from the establishment or agencies like the Inter-Services Intelligence.
"I didn't accept (pressure from the) ISI when I was tortured, why should I accept it now?" Zardari said, referring to the period when he was arrested in the 1990s on graft charges.
"The ISI is under the government of Pakistan. And they can give a lot of pricks, but they cannot tell me what to do. Nobody can," he said.
