Pakistan’s former prime minister Shehbaz Sharif has said that his elder brother Nawaz Sharif would become the premier if his party gets a majority in the parliamentary elections but in case of a split mandate, the decision would be taken after talks with the party’s coalition partners.
Pakistan Election 2024 Live Updates: Voting Begins Amid Polarisation, Outcry Over Internet Suspension
Shehbaz, who is also president of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), made the comments while talking to the Geo News, a day before the vote. He was asked who would be the next prime minister. “Nawaz Sharif will be the prime minister if we get a simple majority. But in case of a split mandate, the decision will be made after talks with coalition partners,” he said.
Shehbaz was also asked if he would prefer to become the prime minister instead of putting the burden of the top job on his brother who may not be able to discharge responsibilities properly due to advanced age and health issues. “My response to this question is the same that I gave to dictators on different occasions: that Nawaz Sharif is my leader and prime minister, he said.
Shehbaz already revealed in different interviews that the powerful establishment on different occasions offered him to become the prime minister instead of his brother but he always rejected the offer. The apparent reason for the offer could be that Shehbaz always maintained good ties with the establishment.
Shehbaz served as head of the coalition government of more than a dozen parties installed after Imran Khan was voted out in April 2022. He kept the coalition intact and ruled with ease for 16 months until the term of the parliament was over in August.
Nearly 650,000 security personnel have been deployed nationwide for the polls that began today at 8:00 am and will continue without any interval until 5:00 pm. A countrywide public holiday has been declared to enable voters to cast their votes without any hindrance.
(With agency inputs)
Comments
0 comment