ISLAMABAD, Sept 15: President Pervez Musharraf is likely to retain the post of army chief after December 31 this year, according to official briefings here on Wednesday.

The cabinet of Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz at its first meeting made it clear that there was no constitutional restriction on General Musharraf remaining the president in uniform.

And Information Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed who briefed newsmen on deliberations of the cabinet meeting and its decisions, later said the government had decided that the president should stay as army chief beyond Dec 31 and 'hopefully' General Musharraf would agree to this.

"Hopefully, Gen Musharraf will agree to retain the office of the army chief even after December 31," Sheikh Rashid, who is also chief spokesman for the government, told Dawn on Wednesday night.

Earlier, the minister had said that the cabinet was of the view that there was no bar under the 17th Amendment on the president keeping both the posts. According to Article 243 of the constitution, Sheikh Rashid said, "the federal government shall have command and control of the armed forces," with the power to appoint the chief of army staff vested in the president.

He said if circumstances required, the parliamentary party of the ruling coalition would go for an act of parliament to legalize the uniform of the president. He said the cabinet was clear that the president did not need any constitutional amendment to keep his army uniform along with the president's office. A final decision, however, will be taken at the parliamentary party level.

When asked if the president was backing out of his promise to take off his uniform by the end of the year, the minister said there was a big difference in the situation which prevailed at that time and the one which was there at present.

The Pakistan Muslim League, he said, had considered the matter in depth and reached the conclusion that it was necessary for the president to maintain both the offices because "some very important economic decisions" were to be taken soon.

The minister defended the Punjab assembly resolution on the uniform issue and said it had provided the lead. This was followed by a resolution adopted in the NWFP assembly opposing the president's uniform while other provinces would come up with their own resolutions, he added.

He told a questioner that resolutions, similar to the one passed by the Punjab assembly would also be tabled in the National Assembly and Senate. A decision about the timing of the resolutions will be taken by the parliamentary party.

Sheikh Rashid defended the large size of the federal cabinet and termed it necessary for good governance and in keeping with the increased strength of parliament. He said that in the opinion of the president this was a way to impart political training to young legislators.

About the ongoing dialogue with India he said Prime Minister Aziz had declared in Dushanbe in clear terms that peace could not be achieved without a settlement of the Kashmir issue in accordance with the wishes of Kashmiri people.

The minister said the cabinet meeting had discussed the goals set by various ministries and the prime minister directed the ministers who had not submitted their goals to do so soon. The premier told the cabinet that he would convene separate meetings of every ministry to discuss about the goals set by them.

The cabinet, Sheikh Rashid said, was briefed on the law and order situation with particular reference to Wana by Interior Minister Aftab Ahmed Sherpao, on the Pakistan-India dialogue by Foreign Minister Khurshid Mehmood Kasuri and on the water situation by the Minister for Water and Power Liaquat Ali Jatoi.

Responding to a query, he said that at the moment the cabinet was engaged in tackling the water management issues for the coming Kharif season which had been resolved through an understanding among the four provinces.

A decision about construction of big reservoirs like Bhasha and Kalabagh, he said, would be taken at an appropriate time. The minister for water and power told the cabinet that the problem of shortage of irrigation water due to substantially low rainfall would be suitably addressed to minimize any adverse impact on the Kharif crop.

Prime Minister Aziz speaking after the foreign minister's briefing on his recent visit to New Delhi and meetings with the Indian leadership, said, "we expect that the dialogue process will move ahead purposefully and in that context we are looking forward to the president's forthcoming meeting with Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in New York.