LAHORE – All eyes are set on Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) chief Nawaz Sharif to see if he includes members of the PML-Quaid-e-Azam (PML-Q) Unification Bloc in the reconstituted Punjab cabinet following criticism of the party’s new move from political and legal quarters, damaging its credibility. Party insiders told Pakistan Today that Nawaz was initially was not very responsive to the idea of including Unification Bloc members in the party and thought such a step would damage his reputation, but a strong lobby in the party led by his own brother, Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif, had convinced Nawaz to accept the bloc members.
The party sources also said that Nawaz was encouraged by party workers in Punjab, who were overwhelmingly in favour of parting ways with the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP), so he decided to include Unification Bloc members in the party’s decision-making forum last week.
The PML-N, however, had to endure much criticism from the people as well as political parties for the decision, both questioning the wisdom of including a political faction that owed its advent to former president and military dictator Pervez Musharraf whom Nawaz seemingly reviled. The sources said that Nawaz might delay the inclusion of Unification Bloc in the new cabinet, at least for the time being, in light of the criticism and because of pressure from party leaders close to him.
They said however that a strong group in the party was still in favour of giving the Unification Bloc nominal representation in the new provincial cabinet. Some legal experts also voiced their concerns over the Sharifs’ decision, which they believed was a gross violation of defection clauses in the Constitution carrying serious political and constitutional ramifications, they added. The bloc is expecting at least two cabinet slots for its members. A reshuffle of the portfolios of PML-N ministers is also expected and it is likely that the size of the new cabinet will be kept to a minimum.
