Islamabad – AFP
The son of new Pakistani Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif took office on Saturday as the governor of Punjab, the most influential region in the political arena, in a move that strengthens his family’s grip on power.
This comes weeks after the ouster of former Prime Minister Imran Khan, after a vote of no confidence was given in Parliament. Hamzah Shahbaz Sharif assumed the presidency of the local government in Punjab, the richest, largest in terms of population, and most influential on the political scene.
“Today, a month-long political crisis in Punjab has ended,” the 47-year-old ruler said in a statement after taking the oath.
He indicated that he would seek to follow his father’s directives, and to win the confidence of the partners in the coalition. The Sharif family, especially Nawaz Sharif, who served as prime minister three times in the past, is accused of corruption and money laundering cases.
Hamza Sharif’s assumption of the position of governor of Punjab comes days after Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, son of former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto who was assassinated in 2007, was officially appointed as the foreign minister in the new government, making the 33-year-old one of the youngest foreign ministers in the world.
Khan had assumed prime ministership in 2018 on the background of a pledge to root out corruption and nepotism. But he lost the support that had been granted to him after the acceleration of inflation, the decline in the national currency exchange rate, and the increase in public debt.
Khan seeks to mobilize the street by organizing mass demonstrations to demand early elections, knowing that the elections are scheduled to take place in October 2023.