Nawaz hopeful to become premier for 4th time

Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) supremo and three-time premier Nawaz Sharif in an interview expressed hopefulness for taking office again following the general elections next year.

In an exclusive interview, the former prime minister shared his personal thoughts with the nation as he sat alongside his daughter and party Vice President Maryam Nawaz who is in London to meet her father after three years.

During the interview, he was asked if he would run for the prime minister's office a fourth time in response to which, he can be heard laughing as he added "God willing" (Inshallah).

There are speculations that there has been a change of heart of powers that be towards the elder Sharif and steps are being taken to allow him to return to the country as his younger sibling Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif holds on to power.

Last month, the ruling party already speculated about his return and there are rumours that his cases will also be taken care of systematically.

'Imran copied 'absolutely not''

During the media talk, the PML-N leader claimed that he had said "absolutely not" when he was offered $5 billion "in a plate" as he questioned rival party Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf's (PTI) claim on the stance.

"On what grounds does Imran say absolutely not? We were the ones who said absolutely not," said Nawaz Sharif claiming that he had rejected an offer for $5 billion in an apparent deal. 

Read PML-N decries ‘dual standards of justice’

"I said Pakistan has its own dignity and we would not compromise on that," he added without mentioning details about the said deal.

Nawaz also expressed his gratitude to Allah that his daughter was sitting next to him, but also reminisced on the “way we were treated the moment we landed in Pakistan”.

Praising Maryam for having “stood by her father like a brave daughter”, Nawaz said his brother PM Shehbaz “publicly appreciated her a lot” and that the party was “all-praises about her”.

The ex-PM also revealed that when he was incarcerated the circumstances weighed particularly heavily on his mother.

“Whenever she would visit me at the Pindi jail,” he said, she would refuse to leave without Nawaz and insist she be put in the jail cell with her son.

“Shehbaz Sahib has always held this against me,” he added, that their mother loved Nawaz more.

He also recalled how he was sitting beside his mother as she breathed her last.

Furthermore, he shared the experience of losing his wife while he and his daughter were both in jail and were not permitted to speak to her one last time.

Nawaz terms ouster 'vengeance'

The PML-N supremo in the interview alleged that all the pain that he and his family were put through was out of “vengeance”.

“In this process of taking revenge against me, you [Imran] have destroyed Pakistan,” said Nawaz as he noted how “everything became more expensive during Imran Khan’s tenure.”

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“If you [Imran] wanted to take revenge against me, that’s fine, by all means,” he asked, “but who had asked you to take revenge from Pakistan?”

During his tenure, Nawaz claimed “people were happy and content” as he blamed Imran Khan’s government for causing the country’s economic crisis.

It may be noted here that Nawaz was sentenced in 2018, to a total of 11 years of imprisonment and was issued Rs1.3 billion fine in Al-Azizia Steel Mills and Avenfield properties references.

His sentence was suspended in 2019 by the Lahore High Court on medical grounds and he was permitted to fly to London to seek treatment, after which he did not return.