Zardari, Nawaz finally pave the way for Mush's ouster

ON HIS WAY OUT: Musharraf could face a confidence vote in Parliament before being formally impeached.

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New Delhi: PPP Chairman Asif Ali Zardari and key ally Nawaz Sharif have finally paved the way for the ouster of Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf. In a press conference in Islamabad the two leaders declared that Musharraf would soon be impeached.

“Leadership believes it has become imperative to move for impeachment under Article 47 against General Musharraf,” Zardari said after a meeting that could be the final signal for President Pervez Musharraf.

Analysts say it could be as soon as next week that Musharraf could face a confidence vote in Parliament before being formally impeached. But with no specific dates being announced, the allies could be giving the President the chance to resign rather than be thrown out.

“This is the kind of time that they (allies) are giving to the President that if he likes he should or can step down. All this is obviously to avoid impeachment and humiliation in Parliament and in front of the entire nation,” Editor, Daily Dawn, Zaffar Abbas said.

But the delay in the announcement also reveals the differences between Sharif and Zardari. Though, for the time being Zardari managed to bring a smile on Sharif's face as a long-standing demand of his was met – the sacked judges would be re-instated immediately after impeachment of Musharraf.

But clearly impeachment would not be that easy as the total number of votes in Pakistani parliament are 442. To impeach the President the Pakistani coalition would need a 2/3rd majority, which is nearly 296 votes against. And for now the ruling coalition apparently does not have the right numbers.

The political moves clearly worried Musharraf enough for him to cancel his visit to the Beijing Olympics. He is now working overtime in his Rawalpindi office consulting constitutional experts, but for this former commando, the options of a counter strike this time will be extremely risky and limited.