- Maryam Nawaz became the first woman to hold the title of Chief Minister of Pakistan’s eastern province of Punjab.
- Nawaz defeated his rival Rana Aftab to become prime minister by a vote of 220-0.
- She was later sworn in at the governor’s office in the eastern city of Lahore.
Former Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s eldest daughter and close aide was sworn in as the country’s first female prime minister in the eastern province of Punjab on Monday. Her rivals accused authorities of nepotism and boycotted state legislative sessions.
Maryam Nawaz, 50, was nominated by the Sunni Ittihad Council to become prime minister by a 220-0 vote, defeating Rana Aftab, an ally and rival of imprisoned former Prime Minister Imran Khan. He took office. Opposition lawmakers supporting Mr. Khan, who was ousted in a 2022 no-confidence vote in parliament, boycotted the 371-member Punjab provincial parliament on Monday.
Nawaz was later sworn in at the governor’s office in the vast eastern city of Lahore, her father alongside other family members in the televised ceremony.
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Aftab said Nawaz’s selection was premature as some of the seats reserved for women and minorities in parliament have not yet been announced. He said her appointment was “another case of nepotism, as her family is known to choose her relatives and friends for top positions whenever they assume power.”
Maryam Nawaz, the newly elected chief minister of Pakistan’s Punjab province, arrives to attend the provincial assembly meeting in Lahore, Pakistan, on February 26, 2024. (AP Photo/KM Choudhary)
Previously, one of Nawaz’s cousins, Hamza Shehbaz, also served as the chief minister of Punjab.
At the ceremony, Nawaz thanked God and promised to serve equally those who voted for him and those who did not. “My heart and the doors of my office remain open to the opposition,” she said.
Nawaz’s appointment was largely expected in the February 8 parliamentary elections, in which his father’s Pakistan Muslim League Party (PML-N) emerged as the largest party in Parliament, the Lok Sabha and the Punjab provincial assembly. Ta.
The PML-N initially trailed candidates representing Khan’s supporters (the former cricketer-turned-Islamist politician was barred from running), but last Friday it won 24 seats. (20 seats out of a total of 60), emerging as the single biggest winner. It is reserved for women, with four of her 10 seats reserved for minorities. Nine independent members also joined the PML-N.
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The PML-N is currently forming a coalition with the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP), along with former Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Nawaz’s uncle, and is on a solid path to becoming the next prime minister for a second term.
The Sharif family is one of the two major families that have dominated Pakistan’s politics for decades. Nawaz Sharif, a three-time prime minister, was ousted in 2017 over corruption scandals. Khan, who replaced Sharif in 2018, granted Sharif permission to travel to London for treatment following a court order.
Sharif returned to Pakistan from self-imposed exile overseas and returned to politics ahead of elections. During his father’s absence, Nawaz led the political movement and took over his father’s work.
