LAHORE: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s (PTI) nominee Sardar Usman Buzdar toface PMLN stalwart Hamza Shahbaz Sharif for the throne of Punjab tomorrow.
He likely to have a tough contest with Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N)candidate Hamza Shehbaz Sharif for the coveted office of chief minister ofPunjab.
On Saturday, Buzdar was given a green signal by the Punjab AssemblySecretariat to contest the election following allegations that the PTInominee had faced a corruption probe and was also acquitted in the murderof six persons in 1998 after allegedly paying blood money. Hamza Shehbaz’snomination papers were also cleared by the assembly officials afterscrutiny.
The PTI and its allies hold 185 seats in the 371-strong house, while thePML-N enjoys the support of 130 members. The PML-N has already lost theelections of the speaker and deputy speaker to the PTI-led alliance inPunjab. PML-Q’s Pervaiz Elahi and PTI’s Dost Mazari emerged victorious inthe elections, respectively.
Hamza’s chances to bag the office vacated by his father, Shehbaz Sharif,have become bleak after the opposition Pakistan People’s Party (PPP)announced that it will abstain from voting for the PML-N candidates forprime minister and Punjab chief minister. Although the PPP has only sixlawmakers in the House, its withdrawal of support to the PML-N has alreadydealt a severe blow to the fragile coalition of at least 11 oppositionparties.
However, PML-N leader Mujtaba Shujaur Rehman claimed that his party hassecured the support of as many as 159 members for the election of Punjab CM.
“We need support of as many as 161 members, our two members have gone forHajj but the independent members are with us,” he told reporters.
Rehman said that the party has come to know about a few of its members whovoted for Pervaiz Elahi for speaker’s election. “We will get to know aboutthe others in a few days,” he added.
The PML-N leader claimed that Usman Buzdar won’t be able to retain the CM’soffice for long even if he were elected.