London, Sept 01: The manoeuvring by PPP's chief
Asif Ali Zardari to get himself elected to the presidency has
sparked an outcry in the country's most famous political
dynasty, with the head of the Bhutto clan describing it as the
latest in a series of tragedies to afflict the family and
the nation.
"It's unfortunate for the country, and ... for the
party that a man of his background should become President,"
said Mumtaz Ali Bhutto, the uncle of assassinated former
premier Benazir Bhutto.
"He is totally corrupt and utterly illiterate ... If
he becomes the next President, what will be left of this
country?" Mumtaz, a founding member of the PPP, was quoted as
saying by The Independent newspaper.
Mumtaz, the head of the Bhutto clan, told The British
daily last week that the prospect of Zardari becoming
President was the latest in a series of tragedies to afflict
the family and Pakistan.
Divisions in the family goes back to the hanging of
former prime minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto Benazir's father
and founder of the PPP by military dictator Zia-ul-Haq in
1979, and have deepened with each successive death.
Both of Benazir's brothers, Shahnawaz and Murtaza,
were killed in controversial circumstances.
Mumtaz, a former federal minister and Chief Minister
of Sindh, feels that the leadership of the PPP should never
have left the family.
"The party was always led by the Bhuttos, and that's
how I think Mr Bhutto wanted it," he said. "The Zardaris have
now taken over the party," he told the London-based daily.
"As far as the party is concerned, I think that's a
gone thing," he said.
Zardari, who enjoys the support from several smaller
parties, is poised to win the contest in Saturday's indirect
election to replace Pervez Musharraf.
Bureau Report
First Published: Monday, September 01, 2008, 00:00