ISAS Briefs

On 18 August 2008, President Pervez Musharraf bowed to the inevitable and resigned from his post, two months short of the 10th anniversary of his coup d’état when he ousted Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. In his resignation speech, Musharraf insisted that he was not guilty of any of the charges being made against him and that he was acting in the best interest of Pakistan by stepping down to avoid a protracted power struggle and political uncertainty. Despite his protestations, the writing was on the wall following the 18 February elections when the people spoke loudly and clearly through the ballot box, shifting the power base away from Musharraf to the civilian parties led by Sharif and Asif Ali Zardari. The nail in the coffin was provided by Musharraf’s two indispensable backers – Pakistan’s military and the United States, both of which were clearly reassessing whether continued support of Musharraf might prove to be an unacceptable liability. Without their full support, Musharraf had no choice but to step down. Already, the provincial assemblies in Punjab, Sindh, the North-West Frontier Province and Baluchistan had tabled motions with overwhelming support demanding Musharraf seek a vote of confidence, and it was obvious that he would have failed.