Nawaz Sharif nominates Shehbaz for prime minister's slot

LAHORE: Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) supremo Nawaz Sharif nominated his younger brother and party president Shehbaz Sharif for the post of the country’s prime minister, Information Secretary Marriyum Aurangzeb said on Tuesday.

Taking to X (formerly Twitter), Marriyum Aurangzeb said that PML-N Senior Vice President Maryam Nawaz was nominated for the post of Punjab’s chief minister.

پاکستان مسلم لیگ (ن) کے قائد جناب محمد نوازشریف نے وزیراعظم اسلامی جمہوریہ پاکستان کے عہدے کےلئے جناب محمد شہبازشریف کو نامزد کر دیا ہے جبکہ وزیراعلی پنجاب کے عہدے کےلئے محترمہ مریم نوازشریف کو نامزد کیا ہے۔ جناب محمد نوازشریف نے پاکستان کے عوام اور سیاسی تعاون فراہم کرنے والی…

— Marriyum Aurangzeb (@Marriyum_A) February 13, 2024

Earlier in a press conference, Shehbaz Sharif requested his brother Nawaz Sharif to accept the office of the prime minister. He also said that PML-N Senior Vice President Maryam Nawaz will be the Punjab chief minister (CM) candidate after the party’s consultations.

He thanked PML-Q chief Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain for inviting different political parties, adding that the purpose of the meeting is to tell the nation that ‘we are united’.

The PML-N president said that the election process is over, and now the new parliament is about to come into existence.

“Now our war is against the country’s challenges. The first challenge is the economy. We have to stabilise it which is a tall task. Nations move forward when their leadership unites and decides to end conflicts and take the nation forward to eliminate problems,” he added.

Shehbaz Sharif said that the parties that attended the meeting have the two-third majority of the National Assembly.

He said that Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) backed independents have a majority in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. “We also respect whosoever is PTI nominee for chief minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa slot,” he added.

When asked if Asif Ali Zardari is the presidential nominee, Shehbaz Sharif replied, “We will not disappoint you.”

Moreover, the former premier called for an end to ‘issues of ego’, adding that the need is for ‘revolutionary steps’ to rescue the country’s economy.

“I again invite the Charter of Economy to everyone. Come, move forward and let’s together promote the Charter of Democracy and end the things we said against one another,” he urged all the political stakeholders.