Nawaz to rivals: let political battles stay political

Urges PML-N to make merit basis of AJK cabinet Wants region to catch up with Punjab on development Qadir, Tariq

MURREE:

A day after the ruling coalition moved to put its differences behind it, PML-N President Nawaz Sharif on Saturday offered a veteran's counsel on Saturday, urging political rivals to keep their battles within the bounds of politics and not allow differences to harden into personal enmity.

Addressing a parliamentary party meeting in Murree, the former prime minister appeared to echo the broader message of restraint and détente that followed Friday's meeting between President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, saying politics should not take opposition to such an extent that political differences turn into enmity.

He added that the political atmosphere in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) had traditionally remained good.

He said the PML-N had not expected to receive any opportunity for complaint from the PPP, noting that his party had always treated its political opponents well.

The former premier also congratulated his party's candidates who won in the first two phases and praised those who could not secure victories for their efforts.

Noting that the party had already secured a majority in the first two phases, he warned that its performance in government would ultimately determine whether the people of AJK remained satisfied.

The PML-N president said that if the PML-N failed to deliver in AJK, the people would become dissatisfied. He noted that the PPP had previously governed the region and said the welfare and well-being of the people of AJK would remain the party's priority.

He said Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had inherited extremely difficult circumstances when he assumed office, adding that the foundation for development in Punjab had been laid by Shehbaz Sharif during his tenure as chief minister of Punjab and subsequently advanced by Maryam Nawaz.

The people of AJK were looking towards Punjab's development, he added.

He slammed political opponents for merely raising slogans without doing anything for development, saying the country was moving forward rather than backwards and that its problems would soon be overcome.

He called for laptops and scholarships for AJK students and urged PM Shehbaz Sharif to provide maximum funds to the region. He also said a Kisan Card should be introduced in AJK.

Nawaz Sharif praised Federal Minister for Kashmir Affairs, Gilgit-Baltistan and Safron Engineer Amir Muqam and Adviser to the Prime Minister on Political Affairs Rana Sanaullah for their tireless efforts during the Kashmir elections.

He added that Amir Muqam had campaigned as if he were contesting his own election.

Nawaz said the PML-N would transform AJK in the same way it had changed Punjab.

He said the AJK cabinet should be selected on merit and that the party must implement its manifesto in full. Development schemes, he added, should be launched across AJK on a large scale.

He noted that AJK was a mountainous region and said its prime minister needed a helicopter to travel and perform official duties. He urged PM Shehbaz Sharif to provide a helicopter to the AJK government.

Reiterating that the welfare of the people of AJK was the priority, Nawaz said the region would be transformed in the same way as Punjab and again called for the introduction of the Kisan Card.

The PML-N leadership has entrusted party supremo Nawaz Sharif with the final authority to decide the next prime minister of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), as the party stepped up consultations on government formation following its success in the recent AJK elections.

The decision was taken at a high-level meeting of the PML-N's Pakistan and AJK leadership chaired by Nawaz Sharif in Murree, where the emerging parliamentary situation and the process of forming the next AJK government came under detailed discussion.

PML-N AJK President Shah Ghulam Qadir and Secretary General Chaudhry Tariq Farooq have emerged as the leading contenders for the office of AJK prime minister.

According to sources, the party leadership will weigh the credentials and political standing of both leaders before finalising the name of the new leader of the house.

Nawaz is expected to announce the name of the AJK leader of the house within the next few days. The party has also authorised him to decide on candidates for the reserved seats and other key parliamentary positions.