Musharraf rules out resignation, ready to work with any coalition

President Pervez Musharraf said he has no plans to resign despite a sweeping election victory by opposition parties over his allies, in a US newspaper interview published on late Tuesday. Asked by the Wall Street Journal whether he would resign or retire, President Musharraf said: “No, not yet. We have to move forward in a way that we bring about a stable democratic government to Pakistan,” according to the interview published on the newspaper’s website. Musharraf faced mounting calls to quit on Tuesday as the opposition parties moved towards a coalition government. If he stays in office, he may have to work with Nawaz Sharif, leader of the opposition Pakistan Muslim League. Sharif was ousted as prime minister by General Musharraf in a coup in 1999. Musharraf stepped down as army chief last November. “The president has no mandate to share governing power with the prime minister,” Musharraf said, according to the Journal’s interview transcript.”The clash would be if the prime minister and president would be trying to get rid of each other. I only hope we would avoid these clashes,” he added.
“I would like to function with any party and any coalition because that is in the interest of Pakistan,” Musharraf told the newspaper, declining to say whether he was concerned his opponents would try to oust him. “We have to go for conciliatory politics and harmonious interaction within the government, between various parties and between the prime minister and the government,” he added. “I will strive towards that end.”