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Musharraf likely to hold referendum in mid-January

Pakistan's chief executive General Pervez Musharraf plans to hold a referendum in the second half of January to give political legitimacy to his military government. The referendum is likely to be held after Eid-ul-Fitr that marks the end of Ramzan, the Islamic month of fasting. (Eid is likely to be celebrated on January 9, depending on the sighting of the moon.)

Encouraged by the lack of resistance to the October 12 coup in which he deposed the democratically-elected government of Nawaz Sharief, Gen Musharraf has already started consultations on the modalities of holding the referendum with legal experts, the Jung reported today quoting highly-placed sources. The referendum on whether the military government should continue will be conducted by the Election Commission of Pakistan.

Political observers in Islamabad, however, do not expect Musharraf to put his government on the line in a direct referendum. He is most likely to seek a mandate for his economic agenda which includes weeding out runaway corruption and putting the terminally ill economy back on the rails.

The military government's initial drive to recover defaulted loans from some of the biggest names in Pakistani politics and business generated considerable enthusiasm among the masses, they point out. Plans to hold a referendum indicate that Musharraf is in no hurry to restore democracy, they said. The chief executive has already declared that he will not relinquish power till all the objectives spelled out by him are achieved.

UNI

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