Pakistan's Newly Elected PM Shehbaz Sharif Mistakenly Calls Himself 'Leader Of Opposition' In Victory Speech

Elected Prime Minister, Shehbaz Sharif inadvertently labeled himself as the "leader of the opposition" while expressing appreciation to his party members for their support during the election.

File photo of former Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.

Source : PTI

Pakistan's recently elected Prime Minister, Shehbaz Sharif, made a slip of the tongue during his victory speech in the National Assembly on Sunday, referring to himself as the "leader of the opposition."

Shehbaz, the consensus nominee of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) for the PM's post, secured 201 votes in the 336-member house. His challenger Omar Ayub Khan of jailed former prime minister Imran Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) secured only 92 votes.

Leader of Opposition PM Shehbaz Sharif pic.twitter.com/7v5yHGW9RD

— Ashiq Ali Breceli (@AshiqAlib02) March 3, 2024

Shehbaz Extends Gratitude To His Elder Brother And Alliance

According to the PTI, In his addresses following the victory, the 72-year-old PML-N president extends gratitude to his elder brother Nawaz and all coalition partners for their confidence in him.

However, he inadvertently labeled himself as the "leader of the opposition" while expressing appreciation to his party members for their support during the election. “I want to express heartfelt thanks to my party members who voted and elected me the leader of the opposition of this house,” he remarked, PTI reported.

Shehbaz is scheduled to take the oath of office on Monday at the Presidential mansion, Aiwan-e-Sadr.

Previously, Shehbaz served as the Prime Minister of a coalition government from April 2022 to August 2023 before Parliament was dissolved ahead of the general elections.

In his victory speech as the country’s 24th prime minister, Shehbaz said Pakistan had a big challenge and opportunity before it.

“If we come together and decide to change the fate of Pakistan […] then God willing, we will defeat these challenges and take Pakistan to its rightful position,” the 72-year-old leader said, PTI reported.

Shehbaz stated that Pakistan is facing an alarming debt crisis where even the expenditures of the National Assembly were being paid by borrowing money.