Benazir reelected PPP chief unopposed

Benazir re-elected PPP chief unoppsed

Karachi |By Amir Zia | 28-07-2002

Former premier Benazir Bhutto and her entire team of central office-bearers yesterday sailed through the intra-party elections unopposed, with polling for the lower tiers to be held as planned today , a senior Pakistan People's Party leader said.

"No member filed nomination papers against Ms. Bhutto or her entire team," said Nabil Gabol, one of the central executive committee members who was elected unopposed.

"She enjoys the confidence of the entire party and remains the only person who can keep the Pakistan People's Party united as well as pull the country out of the prevailing crisis," he told the Gulf News.

The PPP election commission will formally announce the results later, but Gabol said "workers have given their verdict by not filing nomination papers against their central leaders" who have been elected for a period of three years.

Makhdoom Amin Fahim, a powerful landlord of Sindh province and spiritual leader in his area, has been re-elected PPP senior vice chairman, while long time activist Jehangir Badr was re-elected secretary general.

Raza Rabbani, a senior lawyer, retained his slot of the deputy secretary general, while Taj Haider, a playwright and senior activist, continued as the central information secretary of the party.

Bhutto, who is former prime minister, called intra-party elections to meet a key condition of the military-led government, which made it mandatory for all political parties to elect their leaders by August 5 if they want to qualify for the October 10 elections.

Before the government changed the election rules, there had been no convention of internal democracy within the major political parties, including the PPP where Bhutto nominates office-bearers.

But even the government's new rules aimed to strengthen democracy and political parties apparently have failed to change the internal dynamics of the PPP as Bhutto continues to run the show individually from exile.

A disgruntled PPP leader, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said that there were orders from Bhutto that no one is allowed to challenge her nominees, let alone symbolically challenge her leadership by running for the top slot of the party.

"It was a chance for us to change for the better and bring democracy within the party, but the feudal mindset and dictatorial attitude is not letting that happen," he said.

But Gabol insisted that Bhutto "is the only unifying force" and the entire party respects her confidence in the team.

Bhutto, living in self-exile since early 1999, is attempting to stage a comeback in Pakistan. But President Pervez Musharraf, who accuses her of corruption and misuse of power, has pledged that she will not be allowed a role in any future democratic setup.

The government has warned that she will be arrested in line with two separate court rulings which gave her a three-year prison term each for remaining absent from the judicial proceedings.

Bhutto, who accuses the government of victimisation, also faces at least six other corruption cases.

She has pledged that the jail threat won't prevent her from returning to the country and leading the party ahead of elections.

Her spokesman Farhatullah Babar said yesterday she would return to lead her party in the polls, despite the threat of jail as well as new laws introduced by the government which would prevent her from becoming prime minister again.

"She will certainly contest the general elections and before that she will return," Babar said.
"The government charges do not stop her from returning..... she can at best be sent to jail (on return). That's all," Babar added.

But observers say that Bhutto's pledge is mere "public posturing" and she would not like to stage a comeback without an understanding with the military and civil establishment.

So far both Bhutto and her party are trying to avoid a full-blown conflict with the military government, which remains firmly in the saddle and faces little pressure from discredited and disgraced politicians, they said.