Steel dynasty scion Shehbaz Sharif elected PM following the ouster of Imran Khan
Pakistan’s parliament has elected Shehbaz Sharif as the country’s new prime minister following the removal of Imran Khan in a vote of no confidence amid political turmoil in the country.
PML-N President Shehbaz Sharif was elected as the 23rd prime minister of Pakistan after 174 lawmakers voted in his favour after MNAs of Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) party boycotted the election.
No prime minister has ever completed a five-year term in office during the country’s nearly 75-year history. Since Khan’s ouster, tens of thousands of his supporters have taken to the streets in key cities across Pakistan to protest and demand early elections and the return of the prime minister elected by the public in 2018 elections.
Policy measures announced by Shehbaz
Following his election, Shehbaz announced several policy measures he intended to take as the prime minister including:
- Minimum wage will be increased to Rs25,000 from April 1
- 10% increase in pensions from April 1
- Wheat flour will be available at a reduced price under Ramazan package
- High electricity prices will be addressed
- Youth will be offered laptops and technical education
- Benazir card to be reintroduced
- In-camera briefing of the Parliamentary Committee on National Security to discuss and determine the authenticity of a cable that the PTI claimed contained evidence of a foreign conspiracy to topple its government.
- Strengthen ties with China, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, UK and Iran. Seek good ties with India conditional on resolution of the Kashmir dispute.
Who is Shehbaz Sharif?
A steel dynasty scion, Shehbaz Sharif is the younger brother of Nawaz Sharif, a three-time former Pakistani prime minister. Shehbaz’s father, Mohammad Sharif, was an industrialist who founded Ittefaq Group steelmaker.
Sharif’s family was embroiled in scandal in 2018 when his elder brother Nawaz was sentenced to 10 years in prison and handed a $10.5 million fine for corruption. Nawaz was barred from holding office for life.
Shehbaz Sharif first rose to power as the chief minister of Pakistan’s most populous province of Punjab in 1997 and has the reputation for being a good administrator.
His term was cut short in a 1999 military coup against his elder brother following which Shehbaz Sharif and his family went into self-imposed exile in Saudi Arabia. He returned to Pakistan in 2007 and was re-elected chief minister of Punjab the following year.
Infrastructure projects and advances in the industry were some of the highlights of his tenure. However, many of his critics accuse him of cronyism, environmental destruction, and corruption.