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Islamabad: President Pervez Musharraf has once again spurned calls by his opponents to step down, saying he had no intention of resigning or leaving the country and would continue to play his constitutional role.
Speaking at a dinner hosted for him Friday by the business community in Karachi, Musharraf asserted that he still had the support of the powerful army, which he said will not abandon him.
He said he would have quit if his resignation would resolve the problems confronting the nation.
Newspaper reports said representatives of the business community asked the president to stand firm against his opponents.
Musharraf said he was not afraid but had deliberately kept silent "under a well through-out plan because I have been trained to respond both in offensive and defensive manner."
He was of the view that the present uncertainty and instability in the country that caused flight of capital and a host of other problems because the political leadership was not tackling the real issues.
The president said political stability could still be achieved through politics of reconciliation and by forgetting the past and looking forward.
Steering the country
"I have to play my role along with the political parties to steer the country out of the present crisis. So I am not leaving the country," Musharraf said.
"I am not afraid, I'm not afraid at all. You see, I never learnt what fear is. It was never taught to me."
"I will be very happy if the present coalition completes its five-year tenure and resolves main issues by moving forward and freeing itself from politics of vendetta", the president says.
The coalition leader Pakistan People's Party (PPP) and its major partner, Pakistan Muslim League-N (PML-N) of former premier Nawaz Sharif, have differences over modalities for reinstatement of judges deposed by Musharraf late last year.
The two parties also do not see eye to eye over the issue of relations with Musharraf, as the PPP apparently does not share the enthusiasm of PML-N for initiating impeachment proceedings in the parliament against the president.
PPP co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari however publicly stated at least three times last month that a PPP member would soon become president of the country.
With additional inputs from PTI
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