Zardari urged to focus on challenges ahead

Pakistan's new president, Asif Ali Zardari, must dispel the perception he is an artful politician and urgently address a deteriorating economy and worsening militant violence, newspapers said today.

Mr Zardari, the widower of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto, swept a presidential election by legislators on Saturday, winning 481 of 702 electoral college votes to cement his hold on power in nuclear-armed Pakistan.

Mr Zardari spent 11 years in jail on corruption and murder charges and although he was never convicted, and denied any wrongdoing, he faces widespread doubts about his suitability to be president.

A split in the ruling coalition last month amid accusations that Zardari had broken promises on resolving a long-running judicial dispute only added to the questions.

"The challenges ahead are enormous," the News said in an editorial.

"For a starter, he needs a quick and complete makeover of his image from a wily politician ... not mindful of whether he was breaking his promises or losing his credibility," it said.

The Dawn newspaper agreed.

"What Mr Zardari needs to do is dispel the impression that he is a political wheeler-dealer who is adept at making backroom deals but unable to rise to the requirements of statesmanship," it said in an editorial.

Investors and foreign allies led by the United States hope the election will bring some stability after months of political turmoil and rising militant violence. The uncertainty has dragged Pakistani stocks and the rupee sharply lower.

An early test for Mr Zardari will be whether he keeps a promise, that he reiterated after his victory on Saturday, to strip the presidency of the power to dismiss parliament.

"If Mr Zardari fails to keep his word again his credibility and democratic credentials will be in tatters," Dawn said.

With inflation at nearly 25 per cent, dwindling foreign reserves, a widening current account deficit and a sliding rupee, newspapers said the government had to focus on the economy.

Dawn said the government, led by Zardari's Pakistan People's Party (PPP), had done little to halt the economic slide since it was formed after a February general election.

"The PPP-led coalition government, now in the sixth month of its existence, has not arranged any significant amount of money to prop up the economy," it said.

A former businessman, Mr Zardari is close to the United States and has stressed Pakistan's commitment to the deeply unpopular campaign against militancy. US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice welcomed Mr Zardari's election and praised what she said was his emphasis on fighting terrorism.

But Mr Zardari is taking office at a time when many Pakistanis see the United States as a threat, especially after a bloody incursion by US ground troops hunting suspected militants in a village on the Afghan border on Wednesday.

Reuters