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Islamabad: Pakistan's army must stay out of politics, the party of slain former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto said on Friday, as it worked to build a government that can strip its ex-military president of much of his power.
President Pervez Mush-arraf, meanwhile, urged the victors of February 18 elections to "stop politicking and move toward forming a government." He said parliament would be convened within a week and a half.
"I promise that if peace is maintained, I will support whichever coalition is formed," he said after inaugurating a water supply scheme in southern Pakistan.
Bhutto's party won most seats in the elections that are supposed to return Pakistan to democracy after eight years of military rule. Musharraf's allies fared badly. Negotiations are still under way on forming a coalition government but the winning parties appear on a collision course with the former army strongman, which could herald fresh turmoil in a country under attack from Islamic fighters.
During his tenure, Musharraf entrenched the military's say in policymaking. He imposed de facto martial law last year in order to secure a new five-year presidential term for himself - with the public backing of his fellow generals.
A spokesman for Bhutto's Pakistan People's Party welcomed a pledge on Thursday from Musharraf's successor as army chief to "stay out of the political process."
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