Is Dr. Lodhi’s Takeover In Washington Imminent?

Haqqani is being given a face-saving exit: He stays for a few days in exchange for letting President Zardari giving him a chance to ‘resign’.  Was Ambassador Haqqani part of the understanding reached at the Presidency between Zardari, Gilani, Kayani and Pasha?

Husain Haqqani [L] and Maleeha Lodhi. Both self-made and hard-working. The only difference is that Dr. Lodhi built bridges

and protected her nation’s interests in Washington. Mr. Haqqani viewed himself as another Ahmed Chalabi: a man who put all his eggs in the American basket.

As anger mounts in official circles over Ambassador Haqqani’s questionable role in the drafting of the KLB, it has been learnt from reliable inside sources that President Zardari has risen to his ambassador’s defense.  This has prevented his immediate removal despite many powerful organizations of the state demanding his recall immediately.  Credible rumors tell of an alert being sent to Dr. Maleeha Lodhi to be on standby as Haqqani’s replacement.  Dr.Lodhi’s record in previous ambassadorial stints in Washington and London has generally been positively recognized in Pakistan.

However, what was almost a certainty on Friday night seems to have been postponed but only temporarily as part of a compromise between the Establishment and the Presidency.  This, according to knowledgeable sources, will allow Haqqani a face-saving exit in the form of a resignation within a few weeks.  Apparently, hard evidence relating to Haqqani’s efforts to have the clauses targeting the Pakistan army included in the Kerry-lugar bill were provided to the civilian leadership. This, along with the earlier question marks relating to the Ambassador’s actions, such as the revelation of the confidential letter, on an Indian television channel, to the ISI Chief and the Foreign Secretary; and the granting of visas “at ambassadorial discretion” to a host of Americans, some of whom had earlier been deported, has made it difficult for the Ambassador to retain the trust of most of the state decision makers – beyond the President.

Interestingly, according to inside sources, Ambassador Haqqani was promised a lucrative office in Islamabad in mid 2008 if he would give up the ambassadorial position and return to the country.  However, some of his friends in the Capital had warned him that he was being lured into a trap and should stay away from Pakistan.  The likelihood now is that Mr. Haqqani would remain in Washington even after his resignation as his removal has only temporarily been postponed.

Short URL: http://www.daily.pk/?p=12134

on Oct 14 2009. Filed under Politics. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry