NYT : Maneuvering Before Vote in Pakistan

Maneuvering Before Vote in Pakistan

By SALMAN MASOOD | October 2, 2007

ISLAMABAD, Oct. 2 — Gen. Pervez Musharraf named a close ally today to succeed him as army chief as he prepares to run for another term as president in elections on Saturday. But even as he shored up his power base, a large bloc of opposition politicians intensified their protests against the elections by resigning from the national and provincial assemblies that will hold the vote.

Lt. Gen. Ashfaq Kiyani, the former intelligence chief, will assume charge as vice chief of the army on Oct. 8, according to government officials and state-run television here. If General Musharraf wins a new term as president and resigns his military post, that would position General Kiyani to become army chief.

Meanwhile, a Pakistani cabinet officer, Minister for Railways Sheikh Rashid Ahmed, said that officials had agreed to grant the former prime minister Benazir Bhutto amnesty from being prosecuted in pending corruption cases, Reuters reported.

Ms. Bhutto, who is living in exile, has asked in lengthy negotiations with General Musharraf that graft cases against her and other politicians be dropped. She has said she will return to Pakistan on Oct. 18.

General Musharraf, 64, has said he will resign his role as chief of the army if elected to another term as president in balloting by the national and provincial assemblies on Oct. 6, and he is now moving to ensure that his allies hold the positions of power when and if he relinquishes his military post.

It follows a similar move last month when he promoted another close ally, Nadeem Taj, to the important post of director general of the Inter-Services Intelligence, Pakistan’s main intelligence agency. In another step today, Lt. Gen. Tariq Majeed was promoted as a general and appointed as chairman of the joint chief of staff committee.

A press release by the Pakistani military described General Kiyani as having “qualities of head and heart” and said he was “perceived to be a purposeful and pragmatic commander and embodiment of professionalism.”

But even as General Musharraf prepared for his rule after the elections, hundreds of opposition supporters gathered outside parliament buildings today, chanting slogans against General Musharraf, and 85 members from an opposition alliance All Parties Democratic Movement tendered their resignations to the speaker of the national assembly.

Their resignation is not expected to impede the presidential election but could erode its credibility.

On Saturday, riot police officers fought with batons and tear gas against lawyers protesting General Musharraf’s bid for re-election. Dozens of lawyers and some journalists were beaten and a number arrested in the clashes, witnesses said. They were protesting a Supreme Court ruling on Friday that cleared the way for General Musharraf’s re-election as president while he still in uniform.

But further legal challenges arose today as two more petitions were filed to the court challenging the validity of President Musharraf’s candidacy. The chief justice, Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, has called a nine-member panel to hear these latest petitions.

Liaqut Baloch, an opposition leader, while talking to reporters outside the parliament today, said: “We think Gen. Pervez Musharraf is not acceptable to the nation with or without the military uniform.”

He appealed to the chief justice to order a stay against the presidential election.

Since mounting a military coup in 1999, General Musharraf has derived much of his power from his command of the army and has continued to conduct much of his work as president in uniform.

Graham Bowley contributed reporting from New York.