As emergency was lifted President Musharraf appeared on TV to take credit for, what he said, fulfilling all the promises he had made to move towards restoration of democracy. Imposition of Emergency, he said, was an aberration, unpleasant decision that he made reluctantly, as a last resort to save the country from the threat of destabilisation. However, the democratic process was derailed only for 46 days, not a day longer, it was absolutely necessary to set things right. And to prove his honourable intentions, the president said, it could have continued for as long as six years as it had happened from 1979 to 1985. The President appeared to be conscious of the great damage to his image by his unilateral action and was rather apologetic about the reasons, which prompted him to hold the Constitution in abeyance and run the country under PCO. 'I had put at stake my personal reputation,’ he said. But no one was convinced that his 'conspiracy theory' was a genuine alibi. Who was plotting to destabilise the system, in particular the smooth transition to democracy, the President did not spell out, barring the suggestion that some judge of the Supreme Court had also joined it.
Mercifully the Emergency was lifted earlier than expected, as some critics believed that it might last till the elections were held. Needless to say, there was immense international pressure and opposition at home, which was partly instrumental in revoking the Emergency. It would have been hard to sell the elections at "free and fair" if held under the Emergency. However, according to political pundits, the raison d'etre for imposing Emergency was to sort out the Supreme Court judges threatening to jeopardise President Musharraf's design to get re-elected for the second term. It was essentially a coup against the Supreme Court, which has secured its purpose by purging the undesirable judges and ensuring that the higher judiciary would henceforth go along with the regimes scheme of things. Thus there was no need to continue the Emergency, as all other officially pronounced reasons for lifting it, are lame excuses. Notwithstanding lawyers’ sustained agitation who are holding fort for the rehabilitation of deposed judges, the regime has managed to outgrow an explosive situation as major political parties have eventually come round to participating in the polls without linking it with the question of judges' reinstatement. And President Musharraf has had the assurance to proclaim that the sacking of the judges under the PCO was a closed chapter.
In any case the lifting of the Emergency augurs well for lending a measure of credibility to the election process, even though the opposition parties have been making loud noises about a master-rigging plan on the anvil. President Musharraf, while warning against any agitational politics, which he said, will not be allowed to disrupt the poll process, has once again reaffirmed his commitment to hold 'free, fair and transparent' elections. A level-playing field will be provided to all the contestants, he said. Hopefully his assurance to follow rules of the game will be reflected in the steps he takes to ensure that the election process is accepted by all the participants as non-partisan and above board. It may not be easy for the regime to entirely dispel fears of foul play by the opposition, but President Musharraf should be seen as acting as a 'neutral umpire', rather than as the patron-saint of the 'King's party' which owes allegiance to his leadership. Some issues of contention, such as independence of the Election Commission or the suspension of local bodies, may still raise temperatures, and would call for an amicable resolution. But much would depend on how even-handed is the opportunity given to all the contestants to reach the electorate.
President Musharraf's self-proclaimed transition to a democratic order, in particular, what he says, the third and the final phase, will hinge on his ability to produce a 'free, fair and transparent' election process.
The lifting of the Emergency would otherwise be seen as a futile endeavour, to convince opinion leaders at home and abroad that he means business when he says that he is ready to hand over power to the chosen representatives of the people.