The President of Pakistan arrives in Britain on Tuesday facing accusations that he is using a meeting with David Cameron as a smokescreen for an attempt to shore up his political dynasty.By Duncan Gardham, John Bingham and Gordon Rayner Published: 10:51PM BST 02 Aug 2010 Asif Ali Zardari faces criticism in Pakistan for pressing on with the six-day visit at a time when his country is struggling to cope with its worst floods for 80 years. His decision not to fly home has led to suggestions that his real motive is not Friday's meeting with Mr Cameron, but a rally in Birmingham the following day at which he will help launch his son's campaign to succeed him. Khalid Mahmood, the Labour MP for Birmingham Perry Bar, suggested that Mr Zardari was visiting Britain for "political reasons" involving his son's career, and called on him to cancel the trip. Imran Khan, the former cricketer and chairman of the opposition PTI party, joined the growing chorus of voices demanding that Mr Zardari return to Pakistan to take charge of the response to floods that have killed 1,500 and left millions homeless. Mr Zardari, the widower of Benazir Bhutto, the former Pakistani prime minister, had suggested he might cancel his meeting with Mr Cameron following the Prime Minister's controversial comments about Pakistan exporting terrorism. However, critics claim that the visit was never in doubt because Mr Zardari, who has faced repeated allegations of corruption and investigations into the source of his estimated £1.1 billion fortune, is desperate to win over British Pakistanis who could make or break his son's career. Mr Zardari will address 3,000 members of the Pakistan People's Party from behind a bulletproof screen at the Birmingham International Convention Centre on Saturday to launch his son's active political career. Bilawal Zardari, 21, an Oxford University graduate, is already the chairman of the PPP, but cannot stand for office until the age of 25. The visit is crucial to his prospects because his father needs the support of influential British Pakistanis, many of whom opposed his anointment as PPP co-chairman, together with his son, following the assassination of his wife. The trip has caused further controversy in Pakistan after it emerged that the cost of the rally, estimated at £60,000, will be paid out of Pakistani state funds, as it is being described as a "presidential" function. Mr Mahmood said he was "thoroughly against" the visit. "When there are literally thousands of people dying and a huge amount of disease it is inappropriate for him to be staying in Britain in five-star hotels," he said. "His disregard for what the people of his own nation are going through is clear as he swans around Paris and the UK." Imran Khan said Mr Zardari should have cancelled the visit, with his country in the grip of floods that have "unleashed widespread devastation". Mr Mahmood and a Labour peer, Lord Ahmed, have turned down an invitation to meet Mr Zardari on Thursday as part of a group of British politicians of Pakistani origin. |
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