After being chosen as the 24th prime minister of Pakistan on Sunday, PM-designate Shehbaz Sharif promised to guide the country “back to shore” with the assistance of allied parties in his second term in the top office.
Shehbaz secured victory in the prime ministerial election today by garnering 201 votes against his PTI-backed opponent from the Sunni Ittehdad Council (SIC), Omar Ayub Khan, who managed to secure 92 votes.
Following the announcement by National Assembly Speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq, Shehbaz embraced his elder brother and PML-N leader Nawaz Sharif, who was widely expected to assume the prime ministership after the February 8 elections but chose to step aside for undisclosed reasons in favor of his brother.
In his first speech on the floor of the newly elected house as the PM-designate, Shehbaz stated that major challenges lay ahead on Pakistan’s path but they could be overcome “if we come together and decide to change the country’s fate” by taking it to its rightful position.