TEXT OF PRESS STATEMENT BY PRESIDENT AND C.E. GENERAL PERVEZ MUSHARRAF [20 June 2001]

DOCUMENT # 11

In the name of Allah, the Beneficent and the Most Merciful  
Ladies and Gentlemen,

First of all I would like to thank all of you for being present today on this very important day for myself personally and for Pakistan. Today I have taken over as the President of Pakistan through an amendment in a clause of the PCO of 14^th October 1999 which allowed continuity to the ex-President of Pakistan. I have been thinking about this change since a number of months; may I say that this has been one of the most difficult decisions that I have taken. It has been most difficult because it involved myself. It involved doing something for myself which I have never done in my life. In my entire career I have never done anything for my own self. God has been very kind to me and God continues to be kind to me. I bow my head in total humility for all the bounties that he has given and showered on me and may I add that I will bow in more humility as I rise. The ex-President Mr. Rafique Tarrar has been a man of honour and a man of dignity.

I have had the best of relationship with him, working relationship and may I add that he is a person who has kept Pakistan's interest supreme above his self. I honour him for that, I respect him for that and I will continue to respect and honour him for that. I wish him the best of health in his future life. I shall continue to gain from his experience as we continue the governance of Pakistan. I would like to say a few words on why I decided to take over as the President of Pakistan. The first consideration was a constitutional consideration.  In that the Assemblies according to the PCO of 14th October 1999 were suspended and there was a degree of uncertainty existing all over the political climate, environment of Pakistan. Whether these Assemblies are being restored or not being restored but then the Supreme Court judgment which actually brought out the non-performance of the Assemblies laid the validity of the Assemblies to rest and therefore eased my job of deciding to dissolve the Assemblies. With the dissolution of Assemblies the Office of the President who was elected by those Assemblies became untenable. Certainly the second consideration was a political consideration, where I have been saying that my major concern for Pakistan is the stability and the harmony of this country, the political stability and harmony of this country. I have also been saying that I would like to place proper checks and balances on the super structure of the political environment. I have always also been saying that I will ensure and guarantee the continuity and the sustainability of all the reforms, all the restructuring that I and my government are doing. And I have also finally been saying that national interest I will ensure will remain supreme over any personal or political interest. So achieving all this that I have said on the political side was another consideration which led me to this decision.

Lastly it was the economic consideration where the entire business community of Pakistan and people coming from abroad, investors coming from abroad were waiting and asking for proof of the continuity and sustainability of all the reforms and restructuring that we are doing.

So I thought the proof of this what I have been saying that we will guarantee the continuity and sustainability of whatever reforms we are doing and also improving the economic environment of Pakistan it was essential that I undertake this change. So it was basically the constitutional issue, the political consideration and the economic consideration which led me to this decision. But above all, Ladies and Gentlemen I would like to tell you that this decision has been taken in supreme national interest. I feel in all humility that if I have a role to play for this nation I will not shirk, I will not hesitate, I will not back down. So whatever decision whether it involved the embarrassment of a personal decision for my self I hold national  interest supreme. I personally in all sincerity, in all honesty think that I have a role to play in this nation. I sincerely think that I have a job to do here and therefore I cannot and I will not let this nation down. So, therefore, the decision to become the President. Having said all this I would like to also give out here that as far as the political activity, the political process is concerned there is no change whatsoever. Let there be no doubt that there is a change in our intentions for the future. The Supreme Court order, Supreme Court judgment of holding elections in October 2002 is very clear, we will abide by that. The Local Government elections, Local Bodies upto District level will be there on 14th August and Provincial and National elections will be held on schedule next year. So there is no change in that.
Let there be no doubts on this core. So political activity and all activities will continue as before. I would like to close by only praying to Allah the Almighty that He makes me more humble in the elevation that He has given me and I also pray to Allah that this change augurs well for the future of our beloved nation Pakistan.

Thank you very much."