Musharraf-Bhutto pact almost done deal - minister

ISLAMABAD, Aug 29 (Reuters) A power-sharing pact between Pakistan's embattled President Pervez Musharraf and former prime minister Benazir Bhutto has almost been finalised, a cabinet minister said today.

Bhutto, who has lived in self-exile since 1998, has demanded a commitment from Musharraf to quit as army chief and become a civilian president as a condition for any deal, but Railways Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed said the issue had been settled.

''There is no more uniform issue. It has been settled and the president will make an announcement,'' Ahmed told a news conference.

Musharraf, whose popularity has plummeted in recent months, aims to get re-elected president for another five years between mid-September and mid-October, before his term as army chief expires at the end of the year.

The Supreme Court last week added to pressure on Musharraf to agree terms with Bhutto, by ruling that Nawaz Sharif, the prime minister Musharraf overthrew in 1999, can return from exile in London.

Sharif has said that he intends to go home before the start of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, which will begin in mid-September.

Speculation is rife that Bhutto would also seek an early return to offset backing for Sharif, who has earned public sympathy for his refusal to negotiate with a military president.

Western governments are closely following the political turbulence in Pakistan, a nuclear-armed state whose support is critical to fighting al Qaeda and crushing a Taliban insurgency in Afghanistan.

LEGAL HURDLES, EBBING SUPPORT Petitions challenging the legality of Musharraf's plan to get re-elected, or hold dual office are already piling up at a Supreme Court, regarded as hostile to Musharraf since he tried to oust the chief justice earlier this year.

Two members of the ruling Pakistan Muslim League Quaid-e-Azam (PML-Q) have quit their government posts in protest, saying they couldn't vote for Musharraf in uniform.

A pact with two-time prime minister Bhutto, whose Pakistan People's Party is the country's single largest, could see Musharraf to safety, but he will have to pay Bhutto's price.

Britain's Daily Telegraph newspaper today quoted Bhutto as saying the ''uniform issue is resolved''.

Ahmed said the deal with Bhutto's party was 80 percent finalised.

''There are just two or three points that need to be settled,'' Ahmed said, adding that the outcome of talks between Musharraf's aides and Bhutto in London this week were very important.

Bhutto wants a package of issues to be agreed including the removal of a ban on serving a third term as prime minister. She also wants corruption charges against her to be dropped.

Bhutto is due to meet PPP leaders in London on Friday and wants terms agreed terms by then, so her party can decide whether it will be for or against Musharraf.

''She has shown political wisdom by giving him a window of opportunity for the sake of the nation and at cost to her own popularity. I think he should grab it,'' Senator Enver Baig, who is among PPP leaders going to London, told Reuters.

REUTERS SS RN1600