With Imran Khan losing majority in the National Assembly, and the Opposition alliance claiming over 172 out of 342 votes, the next Prime Minister of Pakistan is geared up to lead the country.
Shahbaz Sharif, the former Chief Minister of Punjab province, co-chairperson of political party Pakistan Muslim League – Nawaz (PML-N) and leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly of Pakistan, has been nominated to become the Prime Minister of Pakistan, after the ouster of Imran Khan.
Shahbaz is the younger brother of former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, who was ousted off his premiership on charges of assets beyond means by Pakistan’s National Accountability Bureau (NAB) and later by the Supreme Court of Pakistan (SCP), is currently in London and is being accused by Imran Khan of orchestrating, planning and facilitating the no-confidence motion against him by hatching a conspiracy in partnership and support of the US and other western countries.
Nawaz Sharif remained Pakistan’s Prime Minister at least three times, but failed to complete his 5-year term every time.
Shahbaz, being member of the wealthy and well-known Sharif family, is also accused of being part of the family dynasty that leads their political party PML-N and is “centered” for people within the family only.
However, Shahbaz, for many, comes with a different set of capabilities and credentials, which many think, may be a good change for the country.
He comes with a strong political track record of being the longest serving Chief Minister of the Punjab province. Shahbaz has been credited in the past for being the “best” Chief Minister, in comparison to other provinces as Punjab stands as the most developed and empowered province in Pakistan.
In 1988, Shahbaz was elected to the Punjab provincial Assembly. Later, he became Member National Assembly (MNA) in 1990.
But with the then Army Chief Pervez Musharraf toppling the then Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s government in 1999, Shahbaz along with the Sharif family, spend years of exile in Saudi Arabia before returning to Pakistan in 2007.
Shahbaz was re-elected as Punjab province’s Chief Minister (CM) as his party PML-N formed the government in the province. Shahbaz became president of PML-N after his brother, Nawaz Sharif was disqualified by the Pakistani courts.
He was Chief Minister of Punjab for the third time in 2013 and served his full tenure till 2018, when PML-N lost the general elections.
It is pertinent to note that Shahbaz, like other members of the Sharif family, are facing serious charges of corruption and money-laundering by the country’s National Accountability Bureau (NAB). He was arrested from the Lahore High Court (LHC) in 2020 on the same charges and was put behind bars.
But after being bailed out, Shahbaz today stands as the next in line to become the country’s Prime Minister. Many say, he played a major role in uniting the Opposition parties and forming the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM).
It is also believed that unlike Imran Khan, who “ignored and negated” the Opposition and did not even “desired” to talk with them, Shahbaz’s approach will be more inclusive being more of a statesman, whose efforts may be focused on running a coalition government with better political understanding and with mutual agreements, to ensure having “better and smooth” political and democratic consistency in the Parliament and legislations.
–IANS