New Pakistani PM vows to repair economy, stop US drone attacks
Source: Agencies |
June 6, 2013, Thursday
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PAKISTAN'S new prime minister took office yesterday vowing to fix the country's ailing economy and end electricity blackouts, while also calling for an end to American drone strikes in tribal areas.
Nawaz Sharif was elected to an unprecedented third term as the prime minister of this country of 180 million people by an electorate frustrated with corruption, inflation and unemployment and looking to him for quickly needed solutions.
He must also navigate a tricky relationship with the United States, which has angered many Pakistanis by using unmanned aerial vehicles to kill militants who hide in areas bordering Afghanistan.
Speaking to the parliament after he was elected, Sharif acknowledged the size of the problems in front of him and vowed action.
"I will do my best to change the fate of the people and Pakistan," he said.
Sharif received 244 votes from the 342-seat parliament, returning him to an office he held twice during the 1990s before being forced out in a military coup in 1999.
He was later sworn in by President Asif Ali Zardari.
During the speech to lawmakers, Sharif emphasized that fixing the country's economy was his top priority.
He listed a litany of problems facing Pakistan, including unpaid loans, unemployment, disillusioned youth, extremism and lawlessness, and widespread corruption.
Sharif also touch on the country's often-tenuous relationship with the US.
"This daily routine of drone attacks, this chapter shall now be closed," Sharif said to widespread applause in the parliament hall. "We do respect others' sovereignty. It is mandatory on others that they respect our sovereignty."
But he gave few details on how he might end the strikes. Many in Pakistan say the strikes kill large numbers of innocent civilians - something the US denies - and end up breeding more extremism by those seeking retribution.
The vote in the National Assembly was something of a formality after Sharif's party's victory in the May 11 parliamentary elections. That win was a comeback for the 63-year-old Sharif. After his 1999 ouster, he spent nearly eight years in exile, mostly in Saudi Arabia, and five years in the opposition before regaining office.
His assumption of office marks a turning point for the country - the first time a democratically elected government has handed over power to another in the country's 65-year history.
Sharif also will face an unprecedented power crisis as, over the last five years, electric outages have lasted as long as 20 hours. People suffer through sweltering summers, and in recent years gas shortages in the winter have left people unable to heat their houses.
Nawaz Sharif was elected to an unprecedented third term as the prime minister of this country of 180 million people by an electorate frustrated with corruption, inflation and unemployment and looking to him for quickly needed solutions.
He must also navigate a tricky relationship with the United States, which has angered many Pakistanis by using unmanned aerial vehicles to kill militants who hide in areas bordering Afghanistan.
Speaking to the parliament after he was elected, Sharif acknowledged the size of the problems in front of him and vowed action.
"I will do my best to change the fate of the people and Pakistan," he said.
Sharif received 244 votes from the 342-seat parliament, returning him to an office he held twice during the 1990s before being forced out in a military coup in 1999.
He was later sworn in by President Asif Ali Zardari.
During the speech to lawmakers, Sharif emphasized that fixing the country's economy was his top priority.
He listed a litany of problems facing Pakistan, including unpaid loans, unemployment, disillusioned youth, extremism and lawlessness, and widespread corruption.
Sharif also touch on the country's often-tenuous relationship with the US.
"This daily routine of drone attacks, this chapter shall now be closed," Sharif said to widespread applause in the parliament hall. "We do respect others' sovereignty. It is mandatory on others that they respect our sovereignty."
But he gave few details on how he might end the strikes. Many in Pakistan say the strikes kill large numbers of innocent civilians - something the US denies - and end up breeding more extremism by those seeking retribution.
The vote in the National Assembly was something of a formality after Sharif's party's victory in the May 11 parliamentary elections. That win was a comeback for the 63-year-old Sharif. After his 1999 ouster, he spent nearly eight years in exile, mostly in Saudi Arabia, and five years in the opposition before regaining office.
His assumption of office marks a turning point for the country - the first time a democratically elected government has handed over power to another in the country's 65-year history.
Sharif also will face an unprecedented power crisis as, over the last five years, electric outages have lasted as long as 20 hours. People suffer through sweltering summers, and in recent years gas shortages in the winter have left people unable to heat their houses.
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