(3 Mar 2024)
RESTRICTION SUMMARY:
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Islamabad, Pakistan - 3 March 2024
1. Exterior of Pakistan’s parliament house, media gathered in compound
2. Pakistani flag at parliament house building
3. Newly elected Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif's convoy arriving at parliament house
4. Various of lawmakers arriving for session to vote for prime minister
5. SOUNDBITE (Urdu) Omar Ayub, Pakistani opposition leader:
"Our immediate demand is to have my Prime Minister Imran Khan released, Bushra Bibi (Imran’s wife) should be released, along with Shah Mahmood Qureshi, Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi and all our women’s activities (should be resumed). All the leadership and workers should be released, bring them out and return our form 47 (election result form) and then we will see what have to do."
6. Lawmakers coming out after session
7. SOUNDBITE (English) Khawja Asif, former defence minister and senior leader at the party of Pakistan’s former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif:
"We are ready to sit and talk with anyone, somebody who has in his mind the betterment of this country and betterment of the common man. Why should we you know reject or hesitate in talking to anyone who's looking for some sort of solution out of this mess?"
8. Various of lawmakers coming out
9. SOUNDBITE (English) Zartaj Gul, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf lawmaker:
"Shehbaz Sharif cannot deliver to this country because he is not elected by the people of Pakistan, he has stolen the credit of the people, of PTI people and he has stolen the vote of Pakistani people. He cannot deliver, he's been imposed on the public of Pakistan."
10. Various of Sharif’s party workers distributing sweets after announcement, UPSOUND: "Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif"
11. Lawmakers and media at parliament
STORYLINE:
Pakistani politicians reacted on Sunday after lawmakers in Pakistan’s National Assembly elected Shehbaz Sharif as the country’s new prime minister for the second time.
Allies of imprisoned former premier Imran Khan in parliament shouted in protest against his appointment, alleging rigging in last month’s election.
Khan is currently serving prison terms in multiple cases and has been barred from seeking or holding office.
Sharif replaced him as prime minister after his ouster in a no-confidence vote in parliament in April 2022.
Speaker Ayaz Sadiq said Sharif secured 201 votes, defeating Omar Ayub of the Sunni Ittehad Council who got 92 votes.
Speaking after the announcement, opposition leader Ayub demanded the immediate release of Khan and his wife.
Ayub was backed by Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party, or PTI, whose candidates could not get enough seats to form a government on their own.
The PTI refused to hold talks with its rivals to form a coalition.
"Shehbaz Sharif cannot deliver to this country because he is not elected by the people of Pakistan," said Zartaj Gul, a lawmaker from PTI.
"He has stolen the vote of Pakistani people. He cannot deliver, he's been imposed on the public of Pakistan," Gul added.
Following days of negotiations, Sharif’s Pakistan Muslim League party and his supporters formed an alliance after the Feb. 8 election, which was overshadowed by militant violence, a nationwide mobile phone shutdown, Khan’s exclusion from the vote, and an unusual delay in announcing the result.
Authorities said cutting communications was necessary to avoid attacks on candidates and security forces.
However, the delay drew criticism from Khan’s party, which insists the vote was rigged to stop it from getting a majority.
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