KARACHI, Aug 24: The former prime minister and self-exiled chairperson of the Pakistan People’s Party, Benazir Bhutto, reiterated on Friday that her party would not accept a president in uniform and would continue to work for transition towards a democratic dispensation in the country.

She also spoke of her intention to return to Pakistan to campaign for her party and join other moderate political parties “to try and bring about a transition”.

In an interview with DawnNews TV channel, Ms Bhutto said a president in uniform blurred the distinction between democracy and dictatorship, adding that “the PPP would find it very hard to reconcile with that and we will not do so.”

Having recently commented that time was running out for “crystallising” the so-called power-sharing package with President Pervez Musharraf, Ms Bhutto told the anchorperson that “we have not reached an agreement yet.”In an earlier interview with a foreign television channel, the former prime minister had said that her “party is getting very upset because elections are round the corner and by end of the month we really need to know where we stand. We either have a package or we don’t have a package.”

In reply to a question, Ms Bhutto told DawnNews: “We are not interested in a deal, we are interested in democracy. We are negotiating to facilitate the transition to democracy,” adding that in her view, democracy was important for defeating extremism and terrorism.

Asked to spell out the PPP’s position on Gen Musharraf’s bid to have himself re-elected by the existing assemblies, and without giving up his military post, Ms Bhutto said: “We believe that his election will be illegal and the electoral college would also be illegal. The PPP believes that it is illegal for a man in uniform to seek election.”

In response to another question, the PPP chairperson said that later this month in London the top leadership of her party will deliberate upon the election issue and a host of other matters. She did not categorically reject the possibility that her party would put up a candidate for the post of president.

Ms Bhutto also touched upon the possibility of internal reconciliation, in which context she cited PML-N chief Mian Nawaz Sharif’s recent statement in which he spelled out the terms for attending any conference held on the government’s initiative.

Commenting on the Supreme Court’s verdict regarding the Sharif brothers’ return to Pakistan, Ms Bhutto said that though they had negotiated a deal earlier, she welcomed the verdict which, she said, vindicated the PPP’s point that every Pakistani should be free to return home and play his or her role in every sphere of life.

Talking about the Alliance for the Restoration of Democracy (ARD), the former prime minister said that it was still operative and “we have left the door open for the PML-N.” However, she refused to comment on criticism regarding her recent initiative and said merely name calling serves no purpose.

In reply to a question, Ms Bhutto said that the PPP sees the Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal as a partner in government and maintained that they should prove their credentials by resigning from the government of Balochistan.

Referring to any role played by the United States in the ongoing dialogue between herself and General Musharraf, Ms Bhutto termed such perceptions “wild reports” while conceding that Washington has great interest in Pakistan’s transition to democracy.