Suleman Shehbaz clears the air regarding 'joker' remarks

Suleman Shehbaz, who is Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif's son, Saturday rendered a clarification regarding his "joker" remarks against three former finance ministers of the country.

Speaking to the media after the accountability court's hearing today, Suleman said that his “joker” remarks were about the last three finance ministers appointed by the Imran Khan government.

The statement from the PM’s son came in response to a journalist's query about his “joker” slur against ex-finance ministers which received a strong response from senior PML-N leader and former prime minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi.

"Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) changed five finance ministers and I called the last three [jokers]," the PM's son stated.

At this, the journalist asked if the "last three" included Miftah Ismail as well. To this, Suleman said that he didn't name anyone.

It is pertinent to mention that PTI changed four finance ministers, not five as he said. Asad Umar, Abdul Hafeez Sheikh, Hammad Azhar, and Shaukat Tarin served from 2018 to 2022 under the PTI government.

On January 16, Suleman took to Twitter and termed the last three finance ministers, seemingly including their own ex-finance minister Miftah Ismail, as “jokers”.

Miftah was the first finance minister of his father’s cabinet and was praised by PM Shehbaz for reviving the International Monetary Fund's (IMF) programme last year.

In the tweet, Suleman said: “The last 3 finance ministers were jokers. They ran a clown show! Dar sb averted a default after atomic detonations in 1998. The challenges are humongous, he is giving his best shot no match for his commitment and hard work. The three jokers have laid minefields!”

Khaqan condemns Suleman's comment

Speaking on the Geo News' programme “Aaj Shahzeb Khanzada Kay Sath” Former Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi said it was inappropriate to call the former finance ministers 'jokers', regardless of their party affiliation.

The senior PML-N leader said he was not sure if Suleman said this or not but such remarks were highly condemnable. He added: “Suleman should explain what the tweet meant.”