ISLAMABAD: The
caretaker government of Prime Minister Mohammedmian Soomro on Monday apologised for the highly provocative
comment made by the Interior Ministry spokesman that late PPP leader Benazir Bhutto had died because she hit the lever of her bullet-proof Land Cruiser on the fateful evening.
At a high-powered briefing to newspaper editors invited from all over the country, Interior Minister Lt General (retd) Hamid Nawaz asked the media and the people to forgive and ignore the comment made by spokesman Brig (retd) Cheema, which caused a huge uproar, as private TV channels obtained footage, showing the assassin pointing the gun at the PPP leader and shooting it.
The briefing by
caretaker Prime Minister Mohammed Mian Soomro, was attended by his foreign minister, his interior minister and the information minister besides senior officials.
Editor after editor lambasted the government for its non-serious attitude towards the tragedy, specially the statement that Benazir Bhutto had died by hitting the lever and not by a bullet or a sharpnel.
Soomro first tried to defend the Interior Ministry spokesman, saying he was just relating the facts which had been told to him, specially about the cause of death. “We are conducting an investigation and all TV footage, all evidence, that would be available will help in reaching a definite conclusion,” Soomro said.
But the issue did not subside. More questions were asked with reference to the medical report of Rawalpindi doctors and it was emphatically pointed out that the report quoted by the spokesman never mentioned the cause of the head injury to Benazir Bhutto. It only said there was a head injury with a broken skull which caused cardio-pulmonary arrest.
Soomro then referred the issue to the interior minister. He explained in detail the security measures which were taken and†asserted that Benazir Bhutto had a bullet-proof vehicle which could not be damaged by any bomb or bullet.Once she was inside it, she was secure and
police vans were trying to keep her vehicle clear of other vehicles. But when she emerged from the sunroof she exposed herself to an attack. “Nothing would have happened to her even if every one in the world had wanted to hurt her,” Gen Hamid Nawaz said.
An editor again pointed out why Brig Cheema had overstepped by saying that a car lever had killed her when the manufacturers of the car and Asif Ali Zardari had stated that there was no metallic lever which could have caused the wound to her head. The medical report also did not mention any such cause of death.
Then the interior minister said the spokesman’s comments may have been a mistake as “we are faujis and we are not so articulate to present our views as you journalists can.” “I am sorry if that happened and please forgive us and ignore the comment,” he told the editors.
PM Soomro was repeatedly asked whether he would allow a foreign investigation into the murder but he continued to assert that Pakistani experts were fully competent to do the job. His continuous denials raised questions about the offer made by President Musharraf to British PM Gordon Brown that foreign help could be welcomed by Pakistan.