After days of political uncertainty, former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif went ahead with a surprise move and nominated his brother and fellow-former PM Shehbaz Sharif as Pakistan's Prime Ministerial candidate on Tuesday, 13 February, hours after Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said that it would support Sharif to form a coalition.
Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz spokesperson Marriyum Aurangzeb announced that PML-N Chief Nawaz Sharif, 74, has nominated his younger brother Shehbaz Sharif, 72, as a candidate for the prime ministerial slot, and his daughter Maryam Nawaz, 50, for the position of Chief Minister of Punjab province.
"Nawaz Sharif, the leader of the Pakistan Muslim League-N, has nominated Shehbaz Sharif for the post of Prime Minister of Pakistan, while Maryam Nawaz Sharif has been nominated for the post of Chief Minister Punjab."PML-N spokesperson Marriyum Aurangzeb
In Thursday's elections, independent candidates supported by PTI secured the most seats in the National Assembly at 93, while PML-N emerged as the largest single party with 75 seats. The Pakistan People's Party (PPP) followed as the third-highest with 54 seats.
Shehbaz Sharif justified the move, stating, "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."
Previously, Shehbaz said he would request his elder brother and party supremo Nawaz Sharif to become the PM for a record fourth time.
Meanwhile, Bilawal Bhutto Zardari withdrew from the prime ministerial race, declaring his party's support for ex-premier Nawaz Sharif without joining the new government. PPP co-chairperson Asif Ali Zardari, father of Bilawal, announced the formation of a coalition government and said, "We will take Pakistan out of difficulty."
"Looking at everything, we have thought and decided to sit together. We have contested elections against each other but despite that, it is not necessary that [we fight] forever. Opposition happens in elections. It was electioneering opposition, not ideological opposition."Bilawal Bhutto Zardari
Shehbaz thanked Zardari and said, "Today we have united to tell the nation that we all accept the split mandate. I am thankful to Zardari and Bilawal that they decided for their party to vote for the PML-N," he said and thanked the other gathered leaders as well.
Hours before the announcement, Imran Khan had hit out at the PML-N and PPP as "mandate thieves" and rejected the notion of forming a coalition with other major political parties. Speaking to journalists in Rawalpindi's high-security Adiala Jail, Khan stated, "There can be no alliance with PML-N, PPP, and MQM."
He cautioned against the "reckless endeavour" of establishing a government based on "stolen votes." In a message relayed through his family on his official X handle, Khan warned, "I caution against the reckless endeavour of forming a government with stolen votes. Such blatant theft will not only disrespect citizens but also plunge the country's economy further into decline."
In order to establish a government, a party or coalition must secure a simple majority of 134 seats in the National Assembly out of the 266 directly elected seats in the general election. Additionally, there are 60 reserved seats for women and 10 for minorities, which are distributed among parties based on their respective ratios of won seats. However, independents do not qualify for these quota seats.
Although two parties can form a coalition while maintaining their distinct identities and policies, independent candidates (in this case, all of the PTI's candidates) who align with a party must abide by that party's discipline and decisions.
(At The Quint, we question everything. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member today.)