What if Shehbaz Sharif were the Prime Minister?

Keep your chin up, Mian sahib, now that the obstacles in the way of your (possible) premiership have disappeared after the closure of Hudaibya reference and after Mian Nawaz Sharif’s green signal for your elevation, barring the bagging of majority votes in the forthcoming general elections.

Even that ‘obstacle’, if at all it is an obstacle, is going to be overcome, given the fact that the Punjab Chief Minister, Mian Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif, has emerged as the ‘bullet (read fastest) chief executive’ of any province of the country since Independence.

It is his bullet speed and workaholic, passionate nature that may work to Shehbaz’s advantage since the voters are fed up with the outdated ‘slogan-mongering’ and so-called ‘charismatic’ politics in which the leaders have been making hollow pledges with no work at all, what to talk of delivery.

If Shehbaz makes his way to the highest executive office, one can expect things to move on a practical, speedy track.

Doctors, during their interaction with media persons, sometimes attribute CM’s restlessness to specific chemistry but whatever the basis, right or wrong, of these ‘chemical explanations’, this chemistry suits the public needs which may be fulfilled in the foreseeable future if the pace of work- and work- continues with the same passion as is evidenced from the inauguration of projects and uplift schemes one after the other in rapid succession.

Every now and then, the media-persons are on the run as much as the Punjab Chief Minister is on the run. One day it is the inauguration of kidney and liver hospital and the other day, it is the ground breaking of a state-of-the-art expansive and versatile Information Technology University.

And, as the things continue going operational, someday it is the inauguration of ring road and the other day, discussions are held to remember the great visionaries and leaders, Quaid-i-Azam and Poet of the East.

But this is not all, the running business does not stop at any point since it entails moving to other places like energy plants throughout the province, orange line train project and some welfare schemes including education promotion schemes and award of reasonable prizes to tax-payers and high-achiever students.

Imagine if Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif happens to be the next Prime Minister of Pakistan after having secured public mandate (public mandate is the only way to assume the charge of this high office), the public utility projects like metro trains and buses may spread to the whole of country and line losses and power pilferage are likely to come to a naught since Shehbaz Sharif would definitely deal an iron blow to the corrupt elements in Discos in line with his crusade against corruption.

He has, of late, demanded NAB to investigate the Multan Metro Project millions of times following strict action by Chinese authorities against the blacklisted company, Yabaite, which has now been compelled to publish a public apology, as well (this makes the CM’s transparency slogan more credible).

It is also expected that CPEC in general and Gwadar in particular, which is one among the biggest deep-water seaports after Miami and a few others, is going to get a big boost besides seeing fast-track completion.

One can also expect greater international connectivity and thus greater benefits accruing to the country (without high costs) out of mutually beneficial deals likely to be finalized with foreign countries since many foreign leaders like those of China, US, UK and some European and Asian countries have expressed their high appreciation about Punjab speed, as expressed publicly by Chinese functionaries including the recently transferred Ambassador Extraordinaire, Sun Weidong, former US Consul-General Zacharay Harkenrider and British High Commission seniors.

And then, the general impression about Shehbaz Sharif is that he is considered an ‘Aitdaal-pasand’ (moderate and balanced) person within our greater institutional framework which would definitely help in removing inter-institutional friction, imbalance and many misgivings, thus putting the country on a healthy track of progress and prosperity.