Shahbaz trying to broaden PML-N influence

ISLAMABAD: A few weeks after his election as President of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif has intensified his efforts to fill the gaps in its organisational structure in the run-up to the general elections and expand its base in regions that have been ignored since long.

Besides, he has also started working to form alliances so that the PML-N has even a modest presence in these areas in the next general elections. The PML-N has traditionally been weak in some of these belts, which have, as a result, hardly ever made much contribution to its strength in the national and provincial assemblies. One of the major reasons behind its poor showing in these regions has been the lack of attention by the PML-N.

Through his different moves, Shahbaz Sharif is showing that he is enjoying himself a relative free-hand in removing flaws and deficiencies in the party network and putting its own house in order. Whether or not such initiatives will produce dividends for the PML-N at the hustings will be seen in the upcoming parliamentary polls.

While PML-N supreme leader and ousted prime minister Nawaz Sharif is mostly entangled in references that necessitate his daily appearance before an accountability court of the federal capital, leaving him with little time to attend to party affairs, the younger brother is focused on its matters. To begin with, Shahbaz Sharif has put up the organisational edifice in Sindh and Balochistan where it has either been in the tatters or had become nonexistent for different reasons.

The Balochistan chapter of the PML-N was incapacitated after its entire parliamentary party in the provincial assembly deserted it and as a consequence its chief minister, Nawab Sanaullah Zehri, was ousted without much ado. While no significant number of its lawmakers stood with him, its allies including the National Party (NP) of Hasil Bizenjo and Pakhtunkhwa Milli Awami Party (PkMAP) showed guts and fully backed him.

Shahbaz Sharif has appointed acting office-bearers for the Balochistan PML-N. Federal Minister Lt Gen (R) Abdul Qadir Baloch has been named its acting president while Jamal Shah Kakar and Mir Afzal Mandokhel have been made acting vice-presidents. Saidal Khan has been nominated as the acting secretary general; Younus Khan Baloch acting additional secretary general and Farid Afghan Khan acting information secretary. The permanent structure will be put in place later.

Similarly, the PML-N president has reorganised the party in Sindh and appointed Shah Muhammad Shah as its acting president; Aslam Abru as senior vice president and Saleem Zia as general secretary. He asked them to complete the process of reorganisation at provincial, divisional, district and tehsil levels in Sindh as soon as possible. As is apparent from the efforts being made by Shahbaz Sharif, the PML-N is trying to inch close to the two factions of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) led by Dr Farooq Sattar and Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui for an electoral alliance. However, he has avoided breaking bread with the Pakistan Sarzameen Party (PSP) of Mustafa Kamal which has weaned a number of leaders of the two groups of the MQM.

This is the first time after being elected as the PML-N president that Shahbaz Sharif has also paid visits to Karachi and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and addressed workers’ gatherings there. These trips are meant to mark the presence of the PML-N in Sindh and KP. He has vowed to pay more visits to these areas in the coming days.

His activism comes at a time when Nawaz Sharif and his daughter Maryam have slowed down their public campaign especially speaking to rallies and functions in different parts of Pakistan. However, their presence in the political horizon is being constantly felt in a big way as they hold daily pressers outside the accountability court before or after their appearances.

While they are persisting with their aggressive policy highlighting the accountability targeting them, Shahbaz Sharif is following his dovish strategy not to send even minor negative signals anywhere. Most of his attack is reserved for the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) and their joining of hands in the Senate elections.