Pakistan: Suleman Shehbaz Clarifies His 'Joker' Remarks Against Three Former Finance Ministers, Says Report
Suleman Shehbaz, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif's son, clarified his "joker" remarks against three past finance ministers of Pakistan on Saturday.
Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) leader and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif's son Suleman Shehbaz has clarified his tweet in which he called the last three finance ministers of the country 'jokers,' local media reported on Saturday.
Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) leader and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif's son #SulemanShehbaz on Saturday, attempted to clarify his 'joker' remarks against three former finance ministers of the country, local media reported. pic.twitter.com/qgdr9swQVo
— IANS (@ians_india) January 21, 2023
Suleman Sharif told the media in the federal capital that his "joker" statements were regarding the last three finance ministers nominated by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government, according to media reports.
The Prime Minister's son made the statement in response to a journalist's question regarding his "joker" slur against ex-finance ministers, which elicited a sharp response from senior PML-N leader and former Pakistan Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, according to Geo News.
"PTI changed five finance ministers, and the last three I called (jokers)," Sharif stated, as stated in the report.
According to the report, a journalist then inquired whether the "last three" included Miftah Ismail. Suleman said he did not adopt the name of anyone, and hence his tweet did not refer to any specific personality as "joker".
He incorrectly stated that the PTI has changed four finance ministers, not five. From 2018 until 2022, the PTI government was led by Asad Umar, Abdul Hafeez Sheikh, Hammad Azhar, and Shaukat Tarin, the report said.
Miftah was his father's first finance minister, and the Prime Minister praised him for reviving the International Monetary Fund's (IMF) programme last year.
On January 16, Suleman took to Twitter and said, “The last 3 finance ministers were jokers. They ran a clown show! Dar sb averted a default after atomic detonations in 1998. The challenges are humongous, he is giving his best shot no match for his commitment and hard work. The three jokers have laid minefields!”
Abbasi stated that calling the former finance ministers "jokers," regardless of political affiliation, was unacceptable. The top PML-N leader stated that he was unsure whether Suleman said this or not, but such sentiments were strongly condemned. "Suleman should explain what the tweet meant," he continued, according to the report.
(With Inputs From Agencies)
Top Headline
Trending News
and tablets
