Pervez Musharraf makes a stop on his US lecture tour in Portland, Oregon last week.
Pervez Musharraf makes a stop on his US lecture tour in Portland, Oregon last week.

Musharraf mulls a comeback



ISLAMABAD // Pervez Musharraf, the Pakistani president who resigned from office 18 months ago, is considering a political comeback and plans to meet Pakistani politicians and supporters in Abu Dhabi and Dubai this month to chart his political future, according to a close aide.

"President Musharraf plans to visit Bahrain at the request of the royal family at the end of March. He will then visit Abu Dhabi and Dubai," Rashid Qureshi, a retired major general who acts as the spokesperson for Mr Musharraf, said Thursday. Mr Musharraf, 66, who resigned under the threat of impeachment in 2008, is living in exile in London but indicated his desire to return to politics during a lecture tour in the United States last week.

"I am keeping my options open," Mr Musharraf was quoted as saying in a speech in Sarasota, Florida. He stressed that Pakistan had gone "downhill" since his departure. Efforts are already under way to register a political party, the All Pakistan Muslim League, with the country's election commission to mark his return to politics. Most political analysts had written off any political future for Mr Musharraf when he was forced out of power and discount the possibility of a popular comeback.

Mr Musharraf faces several legal charges if he returns to the country and some politicians have said he should return only if he wants to go to jail. "Many of Musharraf's crimes come in the category of 'High Treason' in the Constitution of Pakistan and are punishable by death," stated an editorial on Wednesday in Daily Times, a Lahore-based English daily newspaper. "He had been let off the hook as a quid pro quo because of an understanding with the PPP, and partly because the institution he headed would not allow its former chief to be dragged over the coals," the editorial stated, referring to the ruling Pakistan People's Party and the powerful army.

The editorial advised Mr Musharraf to "count his blessings", continue with his world lecture tours and "lay his dreams of returning to politics to rest". Supporters of the former president, however, seem undeterred and claim that his fiscal and management policies were better than those of the current government. Inflation has increased steadily over the past few years. Power outages are frequent. Shortages of flour and sugar have caused a public outcry, forcing many to look back at the Musharraf era in a comparatively favourable manner.

"The situation in the country was much better when President Musharraf was in power," Mr Qureshi said. "Politicians have tried to involve him in every wrong that has happened in Pakistan and it is nonsensical. He did everything for the sake of the country. He kept the welfare of Pakistan as the purpose of everything he did." Mr Qureshi said several Pakistani politicians have kept regular contact with Mr Musharraf though they were still reluctant to come out publicly in support of their former leader.

"I am 100 per cent sure he will return to Pakistan," Mr Qureshi said without elaborating on a definite timeline. "If he decides to enter politics, I think there will be a great support for him." Mr Qureshi stressed that a reflection of the support for the former president can be found in his huge following on Facebook, the internet social networking site. "Three and a half months ago his Facebook page was launched. He now has 157,000 members on Facebook," Mr Qureshi said. "He is the most popular [Pakistani] politician on Facebook."

He said a further 150,000 people have registered to become members of the new political party. Mr Qureshi claimed that Mr Musharraf had a massive following in the urban, educated population of the Pakistani society though it had been reluctant to take part in electoral politics, exhibiting apathy towards the country's turbulent and often treacherous politics. "An effort can be made for the urban, educated youth of Pakistan to register and vote [for him]," Mr Qureshi said.

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The rules on fostering in the UAE

A foster couple or family must:

  • be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
  • not be younger than 25 years old
  • not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
  • be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
  • have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
  • undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
  • A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially

Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.

Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.

Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.

“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.

Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.

From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.

Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.

BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.

Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.

Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.

“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.

“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.

“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”

The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”

In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe

Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010

Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille

Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm

Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year

Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”

Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners

TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013 

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Ukraine confirmed the strike, saying the village some 40 kilometres south-west of Kyiv was targeted.

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Uefa Champions League Group H

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R-Truth and Carmella won the Mixed Match Challenge by beating Jinder Mahal and Alicia Fox

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  3. Keep an open mind
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How The Debt Panel's advice helped readers in 2019

December 11: 'My husband died, so what happens to the Dh240,000 he owes in the UAE?'

JL, a housewife from India, wrote to us about her husband, who died earlier this month. He left behind an outstanding loan of Dh240,000 and she was hoping to pay it off with an insurance policy he had taken out. She also wanted to recover some of her husband’s end-of-service liabilities to help support her and her son.

“I have no words to thank you for helping me out,” she wrote to The Debt Panel after receiving the panellists' comments. “The advice has given me an idea of the present status of the loan and how to take it up further. I will draft a letter and send it to the email ID on the bank’s website along with the death certificate. I hope and pray to find a way out of this.”

November 26:  ‘I owe Dh100,000 because my employer has not paid me for a year’

SL, a financial services employee from India, left the UAE in June after quitting his job because his employer had not paid him since November 2018. He owes Dh103,800 on four debts and was told by the panellists he may be able to use the insolvency law to solve his issue. 

SL thanked the panellists for their efforts. "Indeed, I have some clarity on the consequence of the case and the next steps to take regarding my situation," he says. "Hopefully, I will be able to provide a positive testimony soon."

October 15: 'I lost my job and left the UAE owing Dh71,000. Can I return?'

MS, an energy sector employee from South Africa, left the UAE in August after losing his Dh12,000 job. He was struggling to meet the repayments while securing a new position in the UAE and feared he would be detained if he returned. He has now secured a new job and will return to the Emirates this month.

“The insolvency law is indeed a relief to hear,” he says. "I will not apply for insolvency at this stage. I have been able to pay something towards my loan and credit card. As it stands, I only have a one-month deficit, which I will be able to recover by the end of December." 

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