News Analysis |
Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif advised his brother and former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to seek the advice of party workers rather than ‘new leaders merely concerned with designation and cars’. He was addressing the Pakistan Muslim League (PML-N) general council meeting where Nawaz was re-elected unopposed as the party president.
The anti-system group desires a confrontation with institutions in order to achieve its objectives which can be seen by the recent speeches and actions of certain party leaders
“Call party leaders and workers for consultations and make decisions in light of those meetings,” he said. “I suggest that he should instead consult this gathering (of workers). Nawaz Sharif should consult workers and then take a final decision,” he said, adding that some advisors and ministers misled him.
This advice is remarkably similar to the one given by Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan a few days before Nawaz Sharif was disqualified by the Supreme Court. “Your sycophant advisors have taken you to this situation. The Panama fiasco was mishandled, and consultation process was reduced to a great extent,” the minister reportedly said about the Panama Leaks crisis.
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As stated earlier in an analysis, PML(N) which was a fractured party, to begin with and is experiencing a new wave of internal turmoil as its leader was disqualified from the premiership of Pakistan. The disqualification started two new schisms in the already fractured party.
The struggle between Shahbaz and Marium smoldered beneath the surface with the passage of time before reigniting during the Panama Leaks crisis
One was the renewed struggle between Shahbaz Sharif and Marium Nawaz. Shahbaz Sharif has long seen himself as the next in line after Nawaz Sharif and bided his time. The disqualification brought him near what he perceived his inevitable position. However, this was not to the liking of Marium Nawaz who saw herself as the heir apparent of Nawaz.
She started a new campaign to gather influence right after the May 2013 elections. She was instrumental in the social media campaign of the party as well as the mending of fences with the anti-establishment liberal class who were once staunch opponents of the establishment bred conservative Nawaz league.
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One was the renewed struggle between Shahbaz Sharif and Marium Nawaz. Shahbaz Sharif has long seen himself as the next in line after Nawaz Sharif and bided his time
The struggle between Shahbaz and Marium smoldered beneath the surface with the passage of time before reigniting during the Panama Leaks crisis. There was even a time when Shahbaz flew to London to discuss among other things, a “Minus Marium” formula. However, this was opposed by Nawaz Sharif who began to see his daughter as a suitable replacement for himself. It is largely under Marium’s banner that turncoats or “New Leaders” such as Talal Chaudary and Danial Aziz have flocked seeing an easy way to power and glory.
According to many, the “re-election”, abetted by the steamrolling of a controversial bill, of Nawaz Sharif as the head of the PML (N) was nothing other than a ploy to stop Shahbaz from grabbing power in a post-Nawaz scenario.
The Panama fiasco was mishandled, and consultation process was reduced to a great extent,” the minister reportedly said about the Panama Leaks crisis
The other struggle has been between those in the party who want to complete the current tenure and maintain continuity of a democratic process and between those who want to wrap everything up in order to evade the damage being taken by the party on all fronts. Nawaz Sharif himself is in the latter as manifest by his attacks on the judiciary in his re-election speech.
Read more: Democracy under threat from Nawaz Sharif?
The anti-system group desires a confrontation with institutions in order to achieve its objectives which can be seen by the recent speeches and actions of certain party leaders. The pro system group largely consists of Shahbaz Sharif, current Prime Minister Khaqan Abbasi, Chaudry Nisar, Khwaja Saad Rafique and the old guard of the party who see continuity in the process as a lifeline of the battered party.