KARACHI, April 10: Qazi Hussain Ahmed, Vice President of Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal and Chief of Jamaat-i-Islami, said on Thursday that the MMA would join hands with President Musharraf, despite differences with the government, if the country was subjected to aggression.

He was responding to a questioner at Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry where he was invited to enlighten its members about an interest-free economy and explaining his views on ‘Islamic economy’ in the perspective of the emerging political scenario in the country.

After his brief policy statement on the role of industrialists and businessman community in the rise and fall of empires over the pastthree and half centuries, Qazi Hussain Ahmed faced a flurry of questions ranging from political situation in the country to the state of the Muslim world following US invasion of Iraq after Afghanistan. He was also asked about Ummah’s course of action to meet the challenge of US-UK aggression.

The MMA leader endorsed the idea of a committee of Senators and MNAs with a permanent task keep vigilant eye on the country’s nuclear and missile command system and ensure that the deterrents were not dismantled on a ‘single telephone call’.

He also agreed with a questioner that if Dr Abdul Qadeer Khan could not be elected as President of Pakistan, he could at least be awarded the status of ‘life ministership’ as awarded to Mehmood Ali and Raja Tridev Roy.

Qazi Saheb said that the MMA had gone too far to extend its cooperation to the government by offering due support to Gen Pervez Musharraf in his presidential election on the single condition that he gave up his military uniform. “But as he was not willing to relinquish the post of COAS, the MMA did not want to be a party to the continued military rule in the country as it will not be any service to the nation,” he remarked.

Giving example, Qazi Saheb said that although the PML(Q) enjoyed majority in Punjab, dictations were being taken from the corps commander. “The situation in the centre is no different where Prime Minister Mir Zafarullah Khan Jamali has to obey the orders of Gen Pervez Musharraf,” he added.

To a question, he said the MMA was prepared to let Gen Pervez Musharraf continue with his COAS office for a few months more, but not for years.

Referring to the struggle against the Legal Framework Order (LFO) Qazi Saheb said that the opposition was striving for the supremacy of parliament as in the present situation, assemblies were not independent. He described the LFO as ‘a set of alarm’ and observed that the armed forces might continue to rule over the country. The armed forces, he added, would move to dismantle democracy whenever they thought it was necessary for them.

Responding to a question on misuse of transit facility extended to Afghanistan, he acknowledged that certain items were being smuggled into Pakistan despite the fact that they were not in any way meant for the people of Afghanistan. He was told by a member of the KCCI that the smuggling was adversely affecting industries in Pakistan. Qazi Saheb claimed that such items were being smuggled via Landi Kotal in connivance with certain high officials, including those of army.

Regretting the indifferent attitude of Muslim rulers, Qazi Hussain Ahmed said that during the entire period of Iraq crisis, they remained silent spectators despite widespread protest rallies throughout the world, including in the United States itself and European countries.

He also referred to the massive million marches in Pakistan and said that the government did not come out even with a condemnation of the US aggression. Rather, he lamented, Islamabad sided with Washington by raising the slogan of ‘Pakistan first’.

He pointed out that Islamic movements in all the Muslim states were flourishing. He said that these movements were inter-linked and a natural leadership of Ummah would emerge only through this process. The movements, he added, were bringing about a change in the attitude of the respective rulers.

In his brief policy statement, Qazi Saheb said that after fall of Baghdad, people all over the world were in a state of shock and grief. They, he added, were further disturbed after being warned by the United States that any state having or trying to acquire weapons of mass destruction could become a target.

He observed that Pakistan had become a nuclear-capable country with the successful nuclear test and it did have missiles of 2,500km range. No other Muslim country in the world, he added, possessed such a capability. “All our efforts are aimed at ensuring supremacy of parliament and Constitution and the army should pay its full attention to the country’s defence. Every citizen should be prepared to defend the country and this will be possible only when monopoly of a handful of persons in policy making is done away with. Every citizen should feel free to participate in the formulation of the national policies,” the MMA leader declared.

Earlier, Mian Nasir Hayat Magoon, President of the KCCI, welcomed the guest speaker.