Addressing reporters at a packed press conference in London, Bilawal Bhutto Zardari appealed for their understanding saying this was a "new experience" for him and he was "a bit nervous".

The 19-year-old student was named as chairman of the Pakistan People's Party last week after his mother Benazir Bhutto was assassinated on 27. Dec.

Rejecting questions about the undemocratic nature of his appointment, he said he was doing his duty by becoming chairman of the party founded by his grandfather forty years ago. He said "the party needed a close association with my (his) mother through the bloodline".

Blood politics

Politics is in his blood, he said, admitting at the same time that because his experience-to-date was limited, he intended to learn.

"My immediate priority is to return to Oxford to continue my (law) studies," he stated, appealing to the media to respect his need for privacy. "Unless I can finish my education and develop enough maturity I recognise that I will never be in a position to have sufficient wisdom to enter the political arena."

The young man stated quite clearly that he was not frightened by the threat of violence. "How many Bhuttos can you kill? From every house a Bhutto will come," he said, paraphrasing an Urdu saying.

Transparent investigation?

He went on to express his doubts about the investigation into his mother's assassination.

"I appreciate that detectives from Scotland Yard have now gone out to assist with the investigation," he insisted.

"However, the family's and party's request is for a UN-sponsored investigation because we do not believe that an investigation, which is under the authority of the Pakistani government, has a necessary transparency."

The Pakistani detective who helped solve the murder of American journalist Daniel Pearl has now joined the investigation into Benazir Bhutto's death, Pakistani officials announced on Tuesday. He will work with the team of British detectives from Scotland Yard.

Free and fair elections

Bhutto Zardari added at his press conference that he and the party thought Benazir Bhutto would still be alive today, if she had been given adequate protection by the government.

The new leader of the Pakistan People's Party also stressed the importance of elections, which were due this week but have been postponed until February.

He warned that if they were not "free and fair", Pakistan could disintegrate.