ISLAMABAD, June 25 (Reuters) - Pakistani opposition politicians gathered and stocks fell on Friday as speculation mounted that Prime Minister Zafarullah Khan Jamali was about to resign after 19 months at the helm of a pro-military government.
The stout, softly-spoken 60-year-old was sworn in as prime minister in November, 2002, a month after elections were held that formally returned the country to civilian rule following three years of military dictatorship.
But the country’s military chief and president, Pervez Musharraf, is still widely acknowledged to be the country’s real leader, and Jamali has been portrayed as a pawn the president may now be willing to sacrifice.
Political commentators said Musharraf was unhappy with Jamali’s performance and his failure to endorse his policies strongly enough. English and Urdu newspapers have been full of speculation over Jamali’s fate in recent days.
A minister in Jamali’s government declined to discuss the rumours, saying “nothing is clear, there is no news”.
Potential replacements for Jamali, should the rumours prove correct, include Commerce Minister Humayun Akhtar Khan, a successful businessman with close links to the military.
Jamali’s tenure has been beset by problems centring around a clash between Musharraf and opposition parties who object to what they say is the army’s dominant role in Pakistani politics.
In the latest standoff, a six-party conservative Islamic alliance has demanded that Musharraf steps down as head of the army by the end of the year, a promise the president has hinted he may not keep.
Fazal-ur-Rehman, leader of the opposition and prominent member of the Islamic bloc, boycotted the inaugural meeting of the National Security Council on Thursday, saying that the body would further enhance the military’s role in civilian life.
On Friday, Pakistan’s main stock exchange in Karachi fell on rumours Jamali was set to resign. The 100-share Karachi Stock Exchange index fell 45.33 points, or 0.88 percent, to close at 5,105.69 points.
“People were asking each other whether Jamali had already resigned,” said Sajjad Mankani, a dealer at BMA Capital Management. “The market has remained in the grip of rumours and speculation about Jamali all day,” he said.
“Political uncertainty has dragged down the index.”
Another dealer, who declined to be identified, said the market expected a change of prime minister before the weekend.
Members of the Pakistan People’s Party led by self-exiled former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, were meeting in the capital Islamabad to discuss strategy should Jamali step down.
“Jamali’s ouster is written on the wall,” said one PPP official, declining to be named. (Reporting by Amir Zia in KARACHI and Zeeshan Haider and Mike Collett-White in ISLAMABAD)
http://asia.news.yahoo.com/040625/3/1jyq6.html
What the hell is going on in Pakistan…??? Everyday someone getting killed and top of that this political uncertainty.