Pak polls postponed to Feb 18

TURBULENT NEIGHBOURHOOD

Parliament elections in Pakistan slated for January 8 were postponed to February 18 in the wake of damage to election machinery following Benazir Bhutto's assassination, a decision that was flayed, but grudgingly accepted, by the Opposition.

"In the light of the circumstances (following the assassination of Bhutto), the new date for general elections is February 18, 2008, instead of January 8," Chief Election Commissioner Qazi Mohammad Farooq said, rejecting the demand of the Opposition not to postpone the exercise.

"I assure all political parties that the elections will be fair, free and transparent. I appeal to them to accept this decision in the supreme national interest and participate fully," Farooq said.

The polls cannot be held now because of the law and order situation following the assassination and the attack on election offices in various provinces, especially in Sindh, as well as the 'Moharram' period starting later part of next week, he said. He also cited reports from the chief secretaries of various provincial governments who made it clear that election could not be held in the present situation.

The Opposition parties, including the Pakistan People's Party, angrily reacted to the decision and demanded that President Pervez Musharraf quit to ensure free and fair elections.

Leaders of PPP, which along with the PML-N had demanded that the polls should be held as scheduled on January 8, alleged the move by the Election Commission to put off the balloting was aimed at facilitating "rigging" to benefit the PML-Q that backs Musharraf.

Despite their opposition to the postponement, leaders of former premier Nawaz Sharif's PML-N and the PPP, who did not want to be named, said their parties would participate in the elections to the national and four provincial assemblies.

The PML-Q, which backs Musharraf, had been demanding the postponement of the general elections.

PML-N spokesman Ahsan Iqbal told reporters: "We demand that Musharraf should resign and a neutral caretaker government should be put in place immediately."

PPP leader Farzana Raja said: "We are totally opposed to this decision. The party's central executive committee will take a stand on this issue."

PML-N joint secretary Siddique-ul-Farooq said his party feared Musharraf's regime intended to put off the polls indefinitely and might be planning "some actions" that could lead to a further deterioration of the law and order situation.