Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday informed members of the ruling coalition that he will dissolve the National Assembly on Aug. 9, three days before its constitutional term expires, providing the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) with 90 days to conduct the polls.
According to sources in attendance, Sharif apprised lawmakers of this decision at a dinner reception hosted in honor of the outgoing government at Prime Minister’s House. He reportedly said the Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) had finalized internal consultations and would now proceed with a final round of discussions with allied parties and the opposition leader to firm up the caretaker set-up. In a separate statement, Pakistan Peoples Party’s Syed Khursheed Shah, who is the water resources minister, said his party had finalized five names for the post of caretaker prime minister, adding it was still willing to consider additional names if they were proposed by allied parties.
During the dinner, per the sources, the premier summarized the performance of the incumbent government, emphasizing its economic achievements. Stressing that the government had saved the country from default, he claimed comprehensive policies had been devised for the public’s welfare.
He also claimed the government had increased revenue collection by 13 percent in its 15 months in power, adding over 1.3 million new taxpayers were added to the tax net. According to Sharif, power sector recoveries were recorded at over 90 percent, while the total volume of I.T. exports had increased to $2.6 billion in the last fiscal year.
The prime minister also claimed total foreign investment had been recorded at $1.45 billion during last fiscal year. Referring to the newly-formed Special Investment Facilitation Council, he hoped this would increase this number further in the years to come. He also discussed the Rs. 1.8 trillion Kissan Package, claiming 99 percent of targets had been met.
According to local media, the dinner was attended by, among others, Senate Chairman Sadiq Sanjrani, National Assembly Speaker Raja Pervaiz Ashraf, PPP leader Yousuf Raza Gilani, MQM Convener Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui, JUIF leader Asad Mehmood, Balochistan Awami Party leaders Khalid Magsi and Senator Ahmed Khan, Jamhoori Watan Party Chairman Shahzain Bugti, Aslam Bhootani, and Mohsin Dawar.