‘US seeks unity government in Pakistan’

[Naveed Yaseen]

* Time magazine claims US has quietly urged Nawaz Sharif to join government
* Says British and Saudis have also joined effort to broker unity government
* Political observers sceptical of plan, say ‘it’s like mixing oil and water’

Daily Times Monitor

LAHORE: Although President Barack Obama on Wednesday pledged unwavering support for President Asif Zardari’s government, the Americans have quietly urged former prime minister Nawaz Sharif to also join the government, the Time magazine claims.

No surprise, the paper goes on to say, considering Zardari’s approval ratings are perilously low.

When the US brokered a deal with former president Pervez Musharraf to allow former prime minister Benazir Bhutto and her husband, Zardari, to return, Nawaz, seen too close to Islamists, was left out. His party finished second to Zardari’s Pakistan People’s Party in the election but as Zardari’s political fortunes have plummeted, Nawaz has re-emerged as a contender.

US analysts believe the military will launch a concerted offensive to roll back Taliban gains only if the campaign had broad-based public support. Nawaz has lately spoken out strongly against the Taliban and shares Zardari’s belief in peace with India.

Critics say while serving as prime minister, Nawaz had sought to anoint himself Commander of the Faithful, and to introduce sharia law. His aides, however, deny that he sympathises with fundamentalism.

The effort to broker a unity government has been joined by the British and the Saudis. But political observers are sceptical of the plan. “This is going to be a very difficult political exercise,” says former ambassador to Washington Riaz Khokhar. “It’s like mixing oil and water. Between these two big leaders, Sharif and Zardari, the level of mistrust is so high. Ideologically, too, they are on different wavelengths. After all they were in the cabinet together last year, and they had serious differences of opinion.”

“It is an open secret that many friends of Pakistan want a unity government,” a PML-Nawaz spokesman told Time. “They realise that our party has popular support. But the point is that we have already made it very clear that we fully support the government on all national issues.” He said the ruling party had not “shown any seriousness” in implementing the constitutional reforms agreed between the two parties.

Another senior party leader said Nawaz was also weighing tactical considerations. “If the PPP government is discredited in the public eye then our party is there as an alternative,” he said. “But if we join the government, and the government is discredited, who will be the alternative? Power could slip to the extremists in that case. For democracy in this country it is important that there is a strong opposition. Besides, as a junior coalition partner, we cannot set the agenda.”

The PPP too appears divided on power sharing. “I think it is a good idea for Nawaz to come into the government and share the burden,” said a senior government official. Another aide to Zardari however tersely dismissed the notion of Nawaz’s joining the government as “pressure tactics” from Washington and yet another accused the US of trying to “micro-manage” Pakistani politics like South Vietnam.

“Eventually, the solutions will have to come from within Pakistan,” said Khokhar. “Anything manufactured in Washington, London or Riyadh will only have limited success.”

There is also the view that Pakistan now faces a crisis too profound to be fixed by a mere realignment of the political establishment. “What is needed is better governance,” said a politician, “not a better-looking government.”

http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp...009_pg1_12