Islamabad, July 06: Pakistan government and opposition parties are set for another round of confrontation over the legality of President Pervez Musharraf's constitutional amendments tomorrow when the National Assembly meets to take up the opposition-sponsored no confidence motion against the deputy speaker. Musharraf, who returned yesterday after an 18-day-long foreign tour to US and three European countries, has summoned the assembly tomorrow to discuss the motion against deputy speaker Sardar Muhammad Yacub.
The opposition parties, who have been blocking the functioning of the Parliament with a series of no trust motions against the presiding officers held an all party meeting in Lahore today to chalk out their strategy. Musharraf has rejected the opposition demand to quit as chief of Army as a compromise.
Instead he and Prime Minister Mir Zafarullah Khan Jamali have taken a strong stand that LFO is part of the Constitution. The opposition comprising Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), Pakistan Muslim League-N (PML-N) and Islamist alliance Muthahida Majlis Amal (MMA) have declined to accept the stand of the government and vowed to carry their agitation to block the parliament. There is speculation in the media here that Musharraf plans to dissolve the Parliament and impose martial law if the opposition continues its agitation.
However, he did not reveal his plans to deal with the opposition during his meeting with the media yesterday. Bureau Report