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Published 12 Sep, 2003 12:00am

No draft proposal yet prepared:” President, PM discuss LFO

ISLAMABAD, Sept 11: President Gen Pervez Musharraf and Prime Minister Mir Zafarullah Khan Jamali met second time in last two days on Thursday and discussed the government strategy on the issue of Legal Framework Order.

Though no official word was available on the meeting, it was learnt that president’s political aides, who had been holding meeting with Mutahida Majlis-i-Amal (MMA) in Lahore, were also present on the occasion.

The president was briefed about the results of the last round of talks with the MMA team.

PML-Q chief Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain, who has been leading the government’s team, held a detailed meeting with SM Zafar, his main legal adviser, before attending a meeting with the President.

Mr Zafar told Dawn that so far no draft had been prepared as the parties had not been able to achieve consensus on three contentious issues.

He said that the number of proposals and counter proposals on the remaining contentious issues were being discussed at appropriate level. He refused to give more details, saying it had been agreed that no party would disclose to press what had been agreed so far.

The sources, however, said that the issue of uniform was the only hurdle, as President Gen Pervez Musharraf was not ready to commit the date on which he would take off his uniform in the manner the MMA leaders wanted him to do.

These sources said that the President was ready to indicate a time period when he would appoint a new Chief of the Army Staff and would hold the post of the President of Pakistan.

In the last meeting it was agreed that three MMA leaders would meet the President, in which nobody from the government side would be present and he would give them the period.

The talks broke down as the MMA asked for guarantees.

The MMA, however, is not willing to give more than one year to the President.

The MMA leadership also want that the petition challenging the educational qualification of the MMA leaders should be withdrawn.

The petition which was scheduled to be taken up for hearing in the second week of September, will be kept pending till the conclusion of talks with MMA.

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