Experts Disagree with
Benazir on President’s Term
Washington,
DC: Legal and constitutional experts speaking in a Voice
of America program broadcast last Thursday disagreed with
PPP Chairwoman Benazir Bhutto’s contention that President
Musharraf cannot get himself re-elected for a second term
before the end of 2007.
The three experts – Waseem Sajjad, Iftikhar Gilani
and Dr Sher Afghan — interviewed on VOA by Murtaza
Solangi — agreed that presidential elections are due
before October 15. All three were of the opinion that “whatever
assemblies” are in existence between September 15
and October 15 will elect the president as the office of
the president cannot be left vacant under the constitution.
However, they agreed that the election could be postponed
if the electoral college is not in existence at the time
of election.
They were unanimous in maintaining that the election can
be postponed if the National Assembly stands dissolved at
the time of the president’s election. Dr Sher Afgan
opined that if one provincial assembly was dissolved, the
election of the president could still go ahead. Iftikhar
Gilani said since the constitution has been restored in
full, President Musharraf is in violation of it by holding
an office of profit as army chief. Under no parliamentary
system, he stressed, could the term of the PM be limited
to two. He said it would be morally and politically wrong
and unwise on the part of President Musharraf to get himself
re-elected from the current parliament. He found it odd
that office of the army chief had been made equivalent to
that of the president.
Waseem Sajjad said if senators could be elected for a longer
term, the term that their electors enjoy, why could the
same criterion not apply to the president. He said General
Musharraf’s term as president before the restoration
of the constitution does not count as a term since the constitution
was in abeyance then. In effect, he is qualified to be re-elected
for a second term, he added.
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