Pakistan’s upcoming coalition government: The main players
ISLAMABAD: After a split-verdict in Pakistan’s general election this month, a broad alliance of parties have agreed to form a coalition government. The arrangement mirrors the one that ousted Imran Khan back in 2022 - kickstarting two years of political chaos which saw his party survive a crackdown to deliver surprise success at the polls. Here is a look at the main players:
The Sharif Clan
The Sharifs are one of the two families who have ruled Pakistan for decades, and were expected to claim victory in the February 8 polls with the backing of the powerful military establishment. Their Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) will be the senior coalition partner and, according to a deal announced late Tuesday, Shehbaz Sharif will be the prime minister. In the run-up to the election, his elder brother Nawaz — a three-time former prime minister — returned from self-imposed exile in the UK and was touted as the candidate for premier. Dubbed the “Lion of Punjab”, the PML-N puppetmaster is often draped in a Gucci scarf and yet admired by supporters for his approachable “man of the soil” demeanour.
The 74-year-old was sidelined from the 2018 election which carried Khan to power with the military’s blessing. His return was seen as a sign that his relationship with the top brass was mended. But with weak election results, the task of leading has been handed to 72-year-old Shehbaz — considered a softer personality, a better mediator and more pliable to military influence. Shehbaz, who is a cancer survivor and often appears in public sporting a facemask, was prime minister in the coalition ousting Khan. But analysts say Nawaz will be the “power behind the throne”.
The Bhutto dynasty
The Bhuttos — hailing from the lineage of assassinated ex-prime minister Benazir Bhutto — have agreed their Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) will be junior coalition partners, alongside several smaller parties. They have secured in return the largely ceremonial role of president for Asif Ali Zardari, Benazir’s widow and an ex-president nicknamed “Mr 10 percent” —
Empires fall
Tsering readily admits the task of seeking a “resolution to the Sino-Tibetan conflict” with vastly more powerful China can seem overwhelming. But the committed Buddhist takes a long view of history. “Nothing is permanent,” he said, sitting in front of a Tibetan flag in the hills above the northern Indian town of Dharamsala, where the Dalai Lama also lives. India has hosted the exiled Tibetan leadership for decades and is itself a regional rival of China - tensions between the world’s two most populous countries flared after a deadly Himalayan border clash in 2020. “There have been a lot of empires in this world, and every empire has fallen,” Tsering said. But as the campaign for a free Tibet drags on, many worry there is a more time-pressing issue ahead.
The 88-year-old Dalai Lama has shown no indication he faces serious health problems, but the internationally recognisable face of Tibet has dramatically reduced his once-frenetic globetrotting. “He’s always very aware of his mortality... So one day he will die, that is understood, that’s a matter of fact,” Tsering said. “But, of course, we like to hope that there will be some resolution to the cause of Tibet during the lifetime of this Dalai Lama.”
Tibetan Buddhists believe the Dalai Lama is the 14th reincarnation of the leader of an institution dating back six centuries, chosen by monks according to ancient Buddhist traditions. Many expect Beijing will name a successor itself, raising the likelihood of rival nominations for the post. When he stepped aside in favor of the elected government, the Dalai Lama said: “No recognition or acceptance should be given to a candidate chosen for political ends”, singling out China.
‘Control the Tibetan people’
Tsering believes the spiritual leader still has decades to live. “His Holiness keeps saying that ‘I will live up to 113,’” he
the alleged cut he took on government contracts. The 68-year-old last came to power on a sympathy vote after Benazir’s killing and was twice jailed on charges related to corruption, drug smuggling and murder — although he never faced trial.
His floppy-haired son Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, 35, is the PPP leader and was foreign minister in the coalition which ousted Khan two years ago. But analysts predict Zardari will use it to steer the PPP, ostensibly helmed by his son, as it participates in a coalition facing a host of tough economic choices. Ministerial roles for the new government have yet to be announced but the National Assembly must convene by February 29, when the coalition can be confirmed.
Khan’s ‘independents’
Khan sat out the election in jail whilst his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party was barred from campaigning, with leaders rounded up and candidates forced to run as independents. Despite the crackdown
said. “So I chide my Chinese friends, saying: ‘You are waiting for this Dalai Lama to die. “’You are not concerned about the living 14th, but you are more concerned about the yet to come 15th - because you know that if you can control the Dalai Lama, you can control the Tibetan people.’”
Tsering stressed he had no immediate concerns. “Let us see whether His Holiness the Dalai Lama outlives
at the hands of the military establishment Khan fell out with, candidates loyal to PTI took more seats than any other party — but not enough to form a government.
PTI claim the ballot was subject to widespread rigging denying them a majority government, with a cover-up managed by a mobile internet outage on polling day and a massive delay in results. When former cricket star Khan, 71, was ousted in 2022 his lawmakers withdrew from parliament in protest over a no-confidence motion that he said was a US-backed conspiracy.
But this time independents loyal to PTI have allied with fringe party the Sunni Ittehad Council, which they hope will allow them to claim a quota of seats reserved for women and minorities. If approved by the election commission, the party says it could attempt to form a government with chief organizer Omar Ayub Khan their candidate for prime minister. But like the Sharifs and the Bhuttos, the real power of the party will remain with a man behind the scenes—in this case, Imran Khan who is serving several lengthy prison sentences. — AFP
the Communist Party, or the Communist Party outlives His Holiness,” he added. “Even this morning, His Holiness was saying: ‘I have not lost one of my teeth. I’ll live long’. So let’s see.” Tsering sometimes travels to the mountainous Indian border to stare across to the homeland he has never visited, he said, to “fulfill my emotional needs”. —AFP