SHEHBAZ Sharif has been elected as the country’s new prime minister for a second term. He secured 201 votes in the lower house or the National Assembly, defeating his rival Omer Ayub Khan of Sunni Ittehad Council. He previously served as premier from April 2022 to August 2023 following a successful parliamentary no-confidence vote against Imran Khan. He is particularly admired for the development of the communication and transport system across the Punjab province, including small and rural areas. Shehbaz is known as a tough administrator who knows the art to govern. His administrative skills were widely recognized during his three terms as CM of the country’s largest and richest Punjab province from 1997 to 199, 2008 to 2013 and 2013 to 2018 but his 16-month stint as premier did not impress many. A faltering economy and a surging cost of living crisis, exacerbated during his tenure, brought the country to the verge of default before it secured a last-minute bailout from the IMF in July last year. His government, blamed the previous administration of Imran Khan for the dire economic situation.
He was elected as the Chief Minister for the first time in 1997, but his government only lasted slightly over two years as the then Army Chief General Pervez Musharraf toppled the Nawaz Sharif government in a bloodless military coup in October 1999. The Sharif brothers were tried for hijacking a commercial airliner in which Nawaz was sentenced to life imprisonment in April 2000 for issuing orders, which he later rescinded, telling ground control to refuse landing permission to a Karachi-bound airliner, sending it out of the country. Among those on the plane was General Musharraf, who came to power that day in a coup. In 2013, he was again elected as chief minister for a third term and served until 2018. In 2018, he was elected as a member of the National Assembly and served as the opposition leader until Imran Khan’s ouster through a no-trust vote in April 2022. He was chosen as the president of the PML-N in 2017 following the disqualification of Nawaz by the Supreme Court in the wake of the 2016 Panama Papers scandal.
As CM Punjab, he developed a reputation as an efficient administrator, particularly for his grip over bureaucracy. He is viewed as the pioneer of today’s Lahore, one of Pakistan’s developed cities. The rise of their businesses during their rule raised eyebrows. They deny the charges and term the cases politically motivated. The Sharif brothers have been accused of involvement in corruption which were never proven in the courts. Together with Nawaz, Shehbaz and his two sons have been facing several corruption cases again never proven in the courts. He has called for improving ties with the US, calling them critical for Pakistan, a noticeable departure from Imran Khan’s frosty relations with the US, which he accuses of orchestrating his ouster.
Shehbaz has a tilt towards Pakistan’s longtime allies China and Turkiye. A number of Turkish and Chinese companies are engaged in projects in Punjab that were initiated during Shehbaz’s tenure. Several important points in Lahore have been named after Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, former President Abdullah Gul and Istanbul. The $64 billion CPEC, a flagship project of China’s Belt and Road Initiative, was signed during Nawaz Sharif’s tenure in 2015. Shehbaz tried to follow the Turkish model in terms of the development of Punjab during his last term. Fixing the country’s economy, which is currently in horrible shape, will be the biggest challenge for Shehbaz. A confluence of challenges – faltering economy, rising political instability and the looming threat of a resurgence of terrorism – will test Shehbaz for the next five years.
It’s a bumpy ride ahead for the new premier. We should not expect a miracle as far as the economy is concerned, at least for the initial few years. Shehbaz will have to negotiate with the IMF for another program to keep the economy afloat. Many do not see a thaw in escalating tensions on the horizon, with the February 8 polls marred by rigging allegations from former PTI and other parties, charges that the caretaker government and electoral authorities denied. Without political stability, it will not be possible for the new government to focus on fixing the economy. The new government should launch a process of reconciliation. A process of reconciliation is needed between all those elected to parliament. Security will remain a major test for Shehbaz, following a surge in terrorism in recent years.
Shehbaz Sharif will have to toe multi-pronged policies to curb fresh flare-up of terrorism, inflation, price hike and polarization which are directly affecting the economy and future of the country. He very rightly paid visits to Gawader, Balochistan and the KP giving excellent impression of love, harmony and equality. He will have to prove that he is Premier of Pakistan not PMLN or Lahore only. He will have to pull up the socks to rescue the country and the nation. Right from his first visit to Gwader, he is on the toes. It will be a serious blow to PTI cult if he at the Centre and Maryam Nawaz in Punjab succeed.
—The writer is editor, book ambassador political analyst and author of several books based in Islamabad.
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