Nawaz Sharif, who is the eXPakistani FormerPrime Minister, will be Najibiest at the helm of ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) next month that is, seven years ago when the Supreme Court unceremonially sacked him. An interior PML-N leader confessed that Sharif, who is 74 years old, will be given the presidential honorary title on May 11 in the party’s leadership meeting.
In 2017, Nawaz Sharif was declared ineligible to continue as Prime Minister and Party chief after being accused of corrupt dealings with the Panama Papers case. One consequence of his dismissal was that he handed over the party’s leadership and, thus, the role of Prime Minister to someone else.
The party cadre decided during the recent internal party meeting that Sharif’s reinstatement as the party leader’s heir would be a path chosen to correct what party members perceive as the injustice done to Sharif’s family. In order to earn the party’s endorsement, PML-N wants Sharif to embrace the role of President when he returns from China.
This seemingly pertains to several dissenting voices emerging in the PML-N on both the federal and provincial levels. The top leadership of the alliance partner, i.e. PML-N Punjab president Rana Sanaullah, has played a very open role and criticized the alliance leadership, raised cabinet formations that align with Pakistan’s military establishment, and so on.
Sharif’s presidential role in the PML-N party aims to bring unity among the disintegrating factions and mould its image in the mass media as a Democrat. Given the changes in the political scene, Sharif’s leadership will be seen from a different standpoint, especially if it is ruling Pakistan.
