Former President Pervez Musharraf has demanded that the next general election in the country be held under the supervision of the army and not a caretaker government.
“The next general election should be held under the supervision of the army to ensure transparency and fairness,” said the former army chief, currently living in self-exile outside Pakistan.
Addressing workers of his All Pakistan Muslim League party at the Youhanabad Christian Society in Lahore via a video link from London on Sunday night, Musharraf also called for the holding of the polls without any further delay to steer Pakistan out of a crisis. Musharraf, who is the president of the All Pakistan Muslim League, said polls were the only way to overcome the troubles Pakistan was facing.
He said the country had reached the verge of disaster due to the power outages and that the Pakistan People’s Party-led government and the PML-N had done nothing practical to address this issue.
The people often recalled his regime when there were no power cuts and the cost of living was not so high, he claimed. Musharraf said the people should not vote for those who had tried to rule many times and failed. He said he will return to Pakistan before the next election, which is officially scheduled for March 2013.
Musharraf had earlier announced his homecoming on March 23 this year but later deferred the move on the advice of ‘friends’.
The former military ruler has been declared a ‘proclaimed offender’ by an anti-terrorism court for failing to cooperate with investigators probing the 2007 assassination of former premier Benazir Bhutto. The court has also issued an arrest warrant for Musharraf.
Musharraf demands elections to be held under army’s supervision
