Shahbaz elected PML-N president

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) General Council Tuesday elected Punjab Chief Minister Muhammad Shahbaz Sharif as the party’s permanent president.

Shahbaz was made the party’s acting president after the Supreme Court declared former prime minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif ineligible to be the party president.

Addressing a large number of leaders and workers at the Jinnah Convention Center here, Shahbaz said Nawaz Sharif would continue to be the PML-N Quaid and nobody could ever think of taking his place. “I always enjoyed the patronage and guidance of Nawaz Sharif during the last 30 years,” he said.

Shahbaz thanked Nawaz for entrusting him the important party position. “The world knows that an injustice was meted out to our leader Nawaz but he will get justice,” Shahbaz said, adding that Nawaz had turned down an offer of $5 billion and made the country the first Muslim nuclear state.

He said in addition to making the country nuclear, Nawaz spread a network of motorways and roads in the country.

He asserted that Nawaz Sharif will always be the PML-N Quaid. “We have been blessed with a Quaid like Nawaz Sharif,” he said, adding that no party worker including himself could think of taking Nawaz Sharif’s place.

Shahbaz said he always took political advice and guidance from his elder brother who could rightly be called Quaid-e-Azam’s political heir,” he said.

Coming down hard on the PPP and PTI leadership, he said the Zardari-Niazi combo was no match for the PML-N.

Speaking on the occasion, Nawaz said he would not budge from his mission despite all the injustices meted out to him.

“What has been done to me is enough to break my heart. I don’t want to inaugurate any development project but I have decided not to abandon my mission and this is part of my faith,” he said.

The charged crowd chanted slogans for the party’s two top leaders, who also punctuated their speeches with poetry.

Nawaz pointed out that PM Shahid Khaqan Abbasi and Shahbaz Sharif must be remembering him while opening any development project, as he also had invested sweat and blood in these plans.

He maintained that the PML-N manifesto for 2018 general election would consist of four words: ‘Give respect to vote’.

“You and your country will get respect if the vote gets respect. I have no personal interests rather I always talked about the interests of the country and its people.”

Nawaz said following his disqualification, the masses would turn the next general election into a referendum.

“Somebody (should) tell me as to why I am being asked to appear before courts. Let me know if I have committed any corruption?”

Criticising his opponents with regard to the Senate election, Nawaz said all the wound-up toys bowed in unison before a person who had not served the country. “What are the services of this person before whom you all bowed at one place? All the caravans coming from Banigala, Bilawal House and KP stopped at the court of this person having no credentials,” he said.

Without naming Imran, Nawaz said the nation knew very well that he was a liar and hypocrite because there was contradiction in his words and deeds.

“It is a matter of shame for the nation. You have lost despite winning and we have won despite losing,” he said.

“The PML-N leaders are not like those who make compromises and sell the country and the nation for their personal interests.

We are ready to die for Pakistan, but these wound-up toys will sell the motherland for their own interests,” he said.

Nawaz maintained that they always bowed before Almighty Allah and not before any personality. “We will make the upcoming general election a referendum and change destiny of the nation,” he said.

Nawaz said he was being penalised because the country and the nation were getting respect due to elimination of terrorism, creation of jobs and CPEC project. “I have no personal agenda rather my agenda is progress and respect of the country,” he said. He said only that person was targeted whom the nation elected through the power of vote adding that he least cared about his life and his sole mission was to take care of the nation.