Asif Ali Zardari gives no guarantee to Pervez Musharraf on his return to Pakistan

Former Pakistani military dictator general Pervez Musharraf is seeking guarantee from the Zardari government that he won’t be indicted on criminal charges when he returns to Pakistan.

However, the Zardari government is in no mood to give any such assurances, say officials. Musharraf is in Dubai for consultations with his close aides and is expected to announce a roadmap for his return to Pakistan shortly.

According to an official of Musharraf’s still-to-be-registered political party All Pakistan Muslim League, a number of PML-Quaid-a-Azam politicians are encouraging the retired general to return to Pakistan and base his party headquarters in Lahore.

Musharraf’s sidekicks say he enjoys “a very strong goodwill” with ruling families of the UAE including in Dubai and Abu Dhabi.
And these royal friends are said to be persuading the Pakistani government to allow him to return. “Whenever Musharraf visits UAE, he is treated as a royal guest,” says one loyalist. “This shows how close he is to ruling families.”

Meanwhile, according to sources in the PPP, the Arab rulers and the Islamabad administration have already started discussing Musharraf’s future.