Caretaker Punjab Chief Minister Najam Sethi on Sunday said Shahbaz Sharif would take oath as Punjab chief minister (CM) on June 6, thus completing the process of power transfer to the new government.
The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N)’s parliamentary committee, headed by Nawaz Sharif had nominated Shahbaz for CM Punjab for a record fourth term. 61-year-old Shahbaz is the younger brother of PML-N Chief Nawaz Sharif who is set to become Pakistan’s prime minister after their party’s victory in the May 11 polls.
The Punjab governor has convened a provincial assembly session May 29 in which the elected legislators would take their oath on the session’s first day. On the second day, the assembly’s speaker and deputy speaker would be elected and the province’s chief minister would be formally elected on the third day.
With a two-thirds majority under their belt, the PML-N would face no difficult in electing Shahbaz Sharif as the house’s leader. The party’s parliamentary committee believes that none other than Shahbaz Sharif can effectively manage Punjab’s affairs, which is the PML-N’s stronghold.
Earlier, senior PML-N leader Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan was rumoured to be the next Punjab CM, as he had won a provincial assembly seat and Shahbaz Sharif was interested in taking on the federal Water and Power Ministry to deal with Pakistan’s energy crisis. However, Nawaz opted to trust no other person with this crucial post.
