The New York Times Topics > People > Z > Zardari, Asif Ali
Asif Ali Zardari was described by his wife, Benazir Bhutto, as "the Mandela of Pakistan." But while she was prime minister Mr. Zardari earned another nickname: "Mr. 10 Percent," for his reputation of demanding kickbacks on government contracts.
The marriage in 1987 was an arranged one, in the Muslim tradition; her mother acted as marriage broker. Mr. Zardari came from a modest business family that owned a cinema.
Ms. Bhutto herself spoke soberly of what an arranged marriage entailed, saying that her five years under house arrest and, briefly, in prison under Gen. Mohammad Zia ul-Haq, had left her with little opportunity for courtship. But friends watched with fascination as her relationship with Mr. Zardari developed. Handsome, with a macho style that Ms. Bhutto told friends she thought at first was ridiculous, he became an important figure in her two governments, serving in her cabinet in her second term in a role that gave him a major role in approving foreign investment.
Pakistani investigators to accuse her and Mr. Zardari of embezzling as much $1.5 billion from government accounts.British and American private investigators working for the government of her political rival Nawaz Sharif, produced a thick volume of documents tracing what they said were multimillion-dollar kickbacks paid to the couple in return for the award of government contracts, and a web of bank accounts across the world that were used to hide the money. Ms. Bhutto and Mr. Zardari vehemently rejected the allegations, saying their accusers wanted to drive her from power.
While his wife went into exile, Mr. Zardari spent eight years in prison; his release by President Pervez Musharraf in 2004 was seen as an early sign in a possible alliance between Mr. Musharraf and Ms. Bhutto. When Ms. Bhutto returned to Pakistan in October 2007, Mr. Zardari came with her. After she was assassinated at a political rally, it was Mr. Zardari who accompanied her casket in a procession to the family burial site. — Dec. 28, 2007
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
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3 comments:
Is it just me or has Zardari since he took such a central role in the running of the PPP, acted in a sensible and cautionary manner.
Only time will tell.
Another way to say is:
Ibte da -e- Ishq hay roota hay kia
Aage Aage Dehk ye, Hoota hay Kia.
I think Zardari is good at building relationships. Before he married BB and for all the world said about him, they managed to stay together.
Now he has married all of the major political parties in Pakistan together. This is achievement born out of more then just a widespread discontent with Musharraf. This man understands the dynamics of the game all too well.
And he makes his moves very cautitiously. He understands all too well what the public think of him. Whether he will succeed in, or try to, mend his image is another story.
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