NAWAZ NAMES BROTHER AS NEW PM
But he must be elected to the national assembly first
ISLAMABAD
OUSTED prime minister Nawaz Sharif named his brother, Shahbaz, the chief minister of Punjab province, as his successor and nominated ex-oil minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi as an interim premier in a defiant speech yesterday.
The announcement charts a way forward for Pakistan after the Supreme Court ousted Sharif on Friday following an investigation into corruption allegations against him and his family, bringing to an unceremonious end his historic third term in power, and briefly plunging the country into political uncertainty.
“I support Shahbaz after me, but he will take time to contest elections. So for the time being, I nominate Shahid Khaqan Abbasi,” Sharif said in a televised speech to his party.
Shahbaz holds only a provincial seat, so he must be elected to the national assembly before becoming the new prime minister. Shahid Khaqan Abbasi
Earlier, the Election Commission of Pakistan confirmed fresh elections would be held in Nawaz’s former constituency.
Abbasi is set to be rubberstamped as placeholder in a parliamentary vote, with Sharif ’s ruling Pakistan Muslim LeagueNawaz (PML-N) commanding a majority in the 342-seat house.
The opposition could also field a candidate for the premiership, though the nominee had little chance. Nawaz became the 15th prime minister in Pakistan’s 70year history — roughly half of which was under military rule — to be ousted before completing a full term.
The decision sent his political opposition into the streets handing out sweets and beating drums in celebration.
But Pakistanis were divided on whether it set the country’s democratic progress back, with supporters, commentators and some corners of the country’s press slamming the ruling as a “judicial coup”.
The court said in its judgement that it was disqualifying Sharif for failing to disclose his monthly salary of 10,000 dirhams (RM11,600) from a company owned by his son in the United Arab Emirates.
Nawaz did not withdraw the salary, court documents showed, but the five-member bench ruled his failure to disclose its existence meant he was not “honest” — a requirement for politicians under the Constitution.
Opposition leader Imran Khan, who has spearheadead the push against Sharif, hailed the verdict as ushering in a new dawn for Pakistan.
But some observers slammed it as “political” and a “technicality“, with rights campaigner and lawyer, Asma Jahangir, telling private Geo television that the powerful military was using the courts to destabilise democracy.
The military had an antagonistic relationship with Nawaz, who had made several overtures to improve relations with nuclear arch-rival India.
Sharif’s link to the UAE company was exposed as part of an investigation into corruption allegations against his family that erupted as a result of the Panama Papers leak last year. AFP