Word: musharraf
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President Pervez Musharraf may not be up for reelection, but the unpopular former military chief knows as well as anyone that Monday's election in Pakistan is a referendum on his rule. An opposition victory could set in motion a process culminating in Musharraf's unseating - and it will very likely plunge Pakistan into a new wave of political turmoil...
...Pakistan's President is elected by the legislature, as Musharraf was last October, although opponents continue to question the legal basis of his candidacy. But three opinion polls released this week reveal widespread antipathy towards the President. The International Republican Institute reported that Musharraf's job approval rating had fallen to a new low of 15% at the end of January, compared with 72% disapproval. A second survey, conducted by Terror Free Tomorrow, found 70% of Pakistanis wanting Musharraf to resign immediately. And a BBC World Service poll has found that a majority of Pakistanis believe Musharraf's resignation will...
...Musharraf, for his part, disparaged the surveys, accusing international pollsters of disturbing the peace. "Do not incite trouble in Pakistan by prejudging election results, by creating hopes and expectations that may be unrealistic," he said Thursday. "Let the results speak for themselves...
...survey suggests, Pakistanis vote overwhelmingly for opposition parties, Musharraf faces possible impeachment by the new parliament for his November declaration of emergency rule, in which he suspended the constitution, dismissed the Supreme Court and locked up thousands of political workers and civilian protesters...
...Musharraf cannot afford to hold free and fair elections," says Nawaz Sharif, the former Prime Minister who was ousted by the then General Musharraf in a 1999 coup. "His own skin is at risk. He needs indemnity for his actions on November 3, which he cannot achieve if the opposition is in the majority." Sharif, who heads one of Pakistan's major parties, the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz, has been banned from running for a parliamentary seat by Musharraf's government. Musharraf's only option, says Sharif, is "rigging. The other option would be for him to leave quietly before...