File photo of P.M.-designate Shahbaz Sharif. Asif Hassan—AFP
PTI boycotts vote for next premier and announces it is resigning from Lower House
Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) President Shahbaz Sharif was elected the 23rd Prime Minister of Pakistan unopposed on Monday after the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s candidate, Shah Mehmood Qureshi, announced the party was boycotting the polling.
The PMLN’s Ayaz Sadiq once again presided over the voting process after Deputy Speaker Qasim Suri said his “conscience” did not permit him to continue chairing the process. In total, Sharif got 174 votes, while Qureshi got no votes.
Sharif would take oath of office in a swearing-in ceremony at 9 p.m. tonight.
Earlier, the proceedings commenced with the deputy speaker in the chair—Speaker Asad Qaiser resigned on Saturday—and claimed he had “something important” to say before the proceedings began. “In accordance with the orders of the Supreme Court,” he said, “Imran Khan has been ousted from the Prime Minister’s office through vote of no-confidence.” Referring to the apex court’s dismissal of his ruling as “unconstitutional,” he said he “respected” the judgment but claimed that he had refused to allow the vote to proceed on the no-confidence motion because he was a “patriotic” Pakistani.
Reiterating the PTI’s narrative of a “foreign conspiracy,” he praised Khan’s “independence” and claimed the former prime minister had been “punished” for wanting an independent Pakistan. “I apologize to the National Assembly and anyone who was hurt by my actions,” he added.
The floor was then ceded to former foreign minister, and PTI vice chairman, Shah Mehmood Qureshi. In a rambling speech, he said that the constitutional process for a new prime minister had to reach its conclusion today. Thanking the PTI for nominating him as their candidate for the prime minister, he adopted his party’s characteristic criticism of the united opposition, questioning how they could be allies when they differed on ideology.
“Pakistan’s people have proven who they stand with,” he said, referring to the PTI’s protests of March 27 and April 10. “Today, whoever wins will actually lose, while the loser will emerge the victor,” he added. After highlighting Khan’s accomplishments during his tenure as prime minister, Qureshi finally concluded his speech by saying he felt that becoming part of the process to elect a new prime minister would “legitimize” an “illegal” government and the PTI did not wish to become part of this.
Announcing a boycott of the election for prime minister, he said that in line with the PTI’s collective decision, the party was resigning from the Lower House. “We are all resigning today,” he added. However, he did not withdraw his candidacy for the slot of prime minister.
Immediately after Qureshi’s announcement, the deputy speaker stepped down and invited Ayaz Sadiq to preside over the proceedings.
The National Assembly convened on Monday with a single-point agenda to elect the new prime minister following the ouster over the weekend of Imran Khan in a successful vote of no-confidence, the first time in Pakistan’s history. On Sunday, PMLN’s Sharif and PTI’s Qureshi had submitted their nomination papers, with the PTI trying to get Sharif’s candidacy disqualified. The motion was rejected and Sharif’s nomination was accepted by the National Assembly Secretariat.