Sharif asks people to guard democratic mandate

TIL Desk/World/Islamabad/ Pakistan’s ousted prime minister Nawaz Sharif today urged people to guard their mandate so that elected representatives are not removed through “undemocratic” means, days after he was disqualified by the Supreme Court for holding office over the Panama Papers scandal.

Sharif, who was forced to quit before time for the record third time, addressed a huge rally in downtown Rawalpindi, after starting his journey from Islamabad to Lahore to project his political strength. It took him more than 12 hours to cover about 30 km distance which takes about half an hour under normal circumstances.

Sharif, 67, said that it was pity that none of the prime ministers in the 70-year history of the country have been allowed to complete their tenure. “Every prime minister in this country was given one-and- a-half-year tenure, on average, to govern. Some were executed, some jailed, some handcuffed, and some exiled,” he said.

He asked the people to make a pledge to guard their mandate so that elected representative are not removed through undemocratic ways. “Make a promise me that you would get your mandate respected. Promise me you won’t allow your prime minister to be humiliated this way,” he said.