Ex-PM wants respect for law and vote

Pakistan’s former premier Nawaz Sharif has stressed the need for respecting the ‘sanctity of vote’ and linked it to security, prosperity and development of the country.

Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader Sharif urged that constitution, law and vote of people should be respected.

Speaking at a seminar ‘Respect for Vote’ at the National Library Auditorium in Islamabad, Sharif said never in the country’s history has the sanctity of vote been maintained. “We have all gathered here at this seminar to restore the sanctity of vote and save the country,” Nawaz maintained.

Along with PML-N’s top leadership, the seminar was attended by a number of other leaders from prominent political parties. PML-N organised the seminar with coalition partners Pakhtunkhwa Milli Awami Party (PkMAP), Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam (JUI-F) as well as Awami National Party (ANP) from the opposition.

The country’s five major political parties (four belonging to the ruling coalition) vowed to launch a movement for the supremacy of parliament and preservation of the democratic process and urged all pillars of the state, including judiciary and army to work within “constitutional framework”, Pakistani media reported.

Veteran politicians, including PkMAP Chairman Mahmood Khan Achakzai, ANP leader Mir Hasil Khan Bizenjo, JUI-F Chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman, PML-N President Raja Zafarul Haq, among others spoke.