He points guns at his imprisoned political archenemy; Describes the electoral victory as a validation of governance
Chairing an important meeting of PML-N senators in Murree, Nawaz Sharif directed the senators to actively highlight public issues in the Senate. SCREEN CAPTURE
LAHORE:
PML-N President Nawaz Sharif, coming out of the shadows to celebrate his party’s resounding victory in the recent by-elections, on Wednesday claimed that those who propelled now-jailed former Prime Minister Imran Khan to power were even bigger culprits than the jailed leader himself.
He called for their accountability, while avoiding any direct mention of the establishment.
Addressing the newly elected parliamentarians of both Punjab and the National Assembly, Nawaz highlighted the PML-N’s victory in 12 of the 13 contested seats.
Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz along with senior party leaders Rana Sanaullah, Khawaja Saad Rafique and Pervez Rashid were also present.
Both Nawaz Sharif and Maryam criticized the embattled Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) for covertly participating in the elections despite publicly announcing a boycott.
They framed the victories as a testament to the party’s performance and service delivery, a narrative that independent analysts might question.
Addressing the gathering for the first time since his surgery, according to Maryam, Nawaz said the narrative surrounding Imran Khan and those who installed him, marked by vandalism, thuggery, theft and foul language, had collapsed.
“They have been exposed in all these aspects,” he said, alleging that under Khan, the country suffered not only financial bankruptcy but also social, moral and diplomatic decline.
“Khan violated the lack of respect towards elders, youth and women. He came here playing cricket, and that is exactly what he did in power too.”
He also highlighted the return of the IMF during Khan’s government, contrasting it with his own tenure when he bid farewell to the fund.
Nawaz attributed the people’s votes to the PML-N’s performance and service delivery, and gave credit to his daughter Maryam Nawaz, the chief minister of Punjab, and his brother Shehbaz Sharif, the country’s prime minister. “They have both surpassed me in every way and I am happy to admit it,” he said.
The PML-N president also accused the PTI of hypocrisy in its election boycott.
“The PTI said they would boycott the elections, but what kind of boycott is it when Omer Ayub’s wife participates in the elections herself?” he asked, adding that PTI leaders showed photographs of their leaders.
He cited Haripur as an example, where the PML-N defeated the PTI by a margin of 44,000 votes in the PTI stronghold.
Criticizing the mismanagement during the PTI rule, he added, “be it in Punjab or at the Centre, with frequent changes of chief secretaries and inspector generals. Under Maryam Nawaz, there is order in Punjab and everything happens on merit.”
There is a feel-good factor in Punjab that has returned after a long time, he added.
Maryam Nawaz, addressing the newly elected legislators, said that those who tried to erase Nawaz Sharif from history, be it Pervez Musharraf or [Lt] General Faiz Hameed, are now in the dustbin of history.
He said the by-elections had buried Imran’s politics of hate and division and restored the politics of service delivery.
Responding to criticism of being heir to the Sharif family, he said that they may be a by-product of the dynasty’s politics, but apart from politics, they also inherited ethics, discipline and altruism. “We didn’t learn to victimize ourselves or to hurl abuse or incompetence.”
He questioned the PTI’s dual boycott strategy, pointing out that they fielded candidates as independents.
“If they had won, the PTI would have used them to defeat the PML-N. We not only defeated them in Punjab, but also defeated them in their own province. We have also won all the by-elections under the PTI,” he added.
It is pertinent to mention here that under this regime, corrosive measures have remained the hallmark of governance, including running vile social media campaigns, spearheaded by social media accounts followed by the Chief Minister herself.
