MEMBERS of Pakistan’s parliament elected Asif Ali Zardari, co-chairman of the centre-left Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) as the country’s 14th president. Zardari, 68, widower of former two-term Prime Minister (PM), Benazir Bhutto, defeated Mahmood Khan Achakzai.
Achakzai is a veteran politician from the southwestern province of Balochistan, and a candidate of the opposition Sunni Ittehad Council, a religio-political group that now includes members of parliament for jailed former Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Prime Minister Imran Khan.
The coalition led by Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif’s Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) is behind Zardari. The decision by the Pakistani Parliament also ensures that Zardari will occupy the highest and most symbolic position in the country for a second term.
He previously served as president from 2008 to 2013. He was also the first democratically elected president to complete his term in the 75-year history of the Muslim-majority South Asian country.
Early life and political journey
Zardari was born in July 1955 to a Sindhi landlord family and received his early education at Saint Patrick’s School in Karachi, Pakistan’s commercial center and capital of southern Sindh province. He graduated from Cadet College Pitaro, near Hyderabad, Sindh’s second largest city, and then studied business in London.
Although his father, Hakim Ali Zardari, was an active politician, he initially showed no interest in politics. Before becoming a polo player, young Zardari appeared as a child star in local films.
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His engagement to Benazir Bhutto, who returned from exile in London in 1986, shocked many in the country. The two married in 1987, which marked his entry into politics.
The couple is blessed with three children, Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, Bakhtawar and Assefa. Bilawal is currently chairman of the PPP and will remain Islamabad’s top diplomat under PM Sharif’s government from April 2022 to August 2023.
Zardari became the center of attention after Benazir Bhutto was elected as the country’s first female PM in 1988. But his political opponents attacked him with issues of corruption and bribery.
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Zardari’s first government post was as environment minister during Benazir’s second term, which lasted from 1993 to 1996. He was also investment minister from 1995 to 1996.
His opponents nicknamed him ‘Mr 10%’ and blamed him for the collapse of Benazir’s second-term government which was beset by corruption issues.
Later, he served several prison sentences from 1990 to 2004 in criminal cases. It ranges from corruption to murder, money laundering and kidnapping for ransom.
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However, none of the allegations have been proven in court. Zardari has been elected as a member of the lower house, or National Assembly, four times and once as a senator from 1990 to 2024.
He resigned from parliament after being elected president Saturday (9/3). In Benazir’s final years, Zardari was not involved in politics and lived mostly in the United States, amid rumors of a strained relationship with his wife.
He also sought treatment for psychological distress caused by his years of imprisonment, which took a toll on his physical and mental health. He only returned to the country days after Benazir was murdered at a rally in Rawalpindi, a garrison city in northeastern Pakistan, in December 2007.
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Amidst violent protests across the country against Benazir’s murder, Zardari immediately took over leadership of the party, appointing Bilawal as chairman and himself as co-chairman under the pretext of his late wife’s wishes.
His clever handling of the stressful atmosphere, especially in Sindh after Benazir’s assassination, not only earned him a reputation as a shrewd politician but also brought him close to the establishment. It has become a term to describe the country’s military strength which has played a huge role.
Several months after his party won the 2008 general election, he was elected president, making him the de facto ruler of a country that practices parliamentary democracy, with the PM as chief executive.
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Despite making history, observers insist that Zardari’s five-year tenure was marred by controversy and accusations of corruption. Nonetheless, they praised him for restoring the 1973 constitution by handing over powers to parliament and establishing a national finance commission aimed at distributing resources between provinces.
Before the 2010 constitutional amendments, although the PM was the chief executive, key powers such as appointing judges, attorneys general, provincial governors and commanders of the army, navy and air forces were in the hands of the president.
Additionally, Article 58-2B of the constitution gives the president the authority to dissolve an elected government. However, under the 2010 amendment, which was the result of cooperation between the PPP and PML, all powers were transferred back to the prime minister and parliament.
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He was once again arrested during the PTI government in a corruption case in 2019 but was released on bail six months later.
Influence
High-stakes elections on February 8 resulted in a hung parliament, forcing mainstream political parties to form coalitions. The incumbent ruling coalition includes the PML-N and PPP, which finished second and third respectively in terms of seats, as well as several regional parties.
Although PTI-backed independent groups won the most seats, they were unable to form a government with any coalition partners. Although the office of president has had a ceremonial status since the 18th amendment, the unique formation of the current coalition government gives it an advantage.
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The PML-N-led government relies heavily on the PPP, its second-largest ruling coalition partner, giving Zardari plenty of room to have a say in state affairs.
“Despite having no formal power, he will remain in power as in his previous tenure due to the PML-N’s dependence on the PPP to maintain its rule,” said Karachi-based political commentator Abdul Khalique Ali.
With two provincial governments, Sindh and Balochistan, according to him, Zardari will be the one who actually makes decisions and at the same time avoids public criticism of government policies.
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Ex president
Iskander Mirza, who became Pakistan’s first president in 1956, was overthrown two years later in a military coup by General Ayub Khan. Khan was forced to step down under opposition pressure, handing over power to General Yahya Khan, who resigned two years later after Pakistan lost the 1971 war against India.
Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, founder of the PPP, was elected president in December 1971 but resigned two years later. The reason is that he chose the PM seat based on Pakistan’s new constitution, which established a parliamentary system of government in the country.
Fazl Elahi Chaudry became president in 1973 and resigned in 1978, several months after Bhutto’s government was overthrown in a military coup led by army chief General Zia-ul-Haq.
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Zia died in a plane crash in 1988. Ghulam Ishaq Khan was elected to office the same year. He resigned in 1993 as part of a deal brokered by the army after a political crisis with Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.
Farooq Leghari of the PPP was elected president in 1993 but was forced to resign in 1997. A few months later, Muhammad Rafiq Tarar of the PML-N was elected president.
He resigned in 2001, two years after a military coup by General Pervez Musharraf. Musharraf ruled Pakistan until 2008 when he resigned to avoid impeachment.
After Zardari’s term ended, PML-N’s Mamnoon Hussein was elected president in 2013 and served until 2018. Hussein was replaced by PTI’s Arif Alvi in 2018 and served until the most recent presidential election. (Anadolu/Cah)
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