When Sherbaz Sharif first became Pakistan’s prime minister two years ago, he had to convince a fractious coalition and an angry public to accept unpopular measures to save the country from default. This time it was even worse.

Shehbaz was named the new prime minister of the world’s fifth most populous country on Sunday after his brother and party leader Nawaz unexpectedly handed him the baton.

Sharif Jr.’s position is formidable. Supporters of jailed rival Imran Khan won the most seats in February polls, and Sharif only returned to power due to a shaky alliance. He needs to renew his loan from the International Monetary Fund by April to keep the economy afloat – a task that could exacerbate public unrest. He must also appease the powerful army that once exiled him.

But the 72-year-old politician has been here before. When he first comes to power in 2022, his predecessor Khan agreed weeks before he was ousted to subsidize fuel prices to appease a population squeezed by Asia’s fastest-growing inflation, but the cost to the government is higher than management The cost of the entire federal civil administration. That has stalled an International Monetary Fund rescue plan that was seen as crucial to keeping the economy intact.

At the time, Sharif was told weeks before becoming prime minister that he needed to raise fuel prices to finalize the International Monetary Fund deal and avoid a country default.

“He was really convinced from day one,” said Miftah Ismail, Sharif’s former finance minister. “Then one of our ministers convinced him to wait 15 days. And then every time he was ready, someone said, why don’t you wait three more days?”

It took Sharif six weeks to convince his alliance partners to raise the price, a delay that cost Pakistan hundreds of millions of dollars. Ultimately, he succeeded in securing a $3 billion loan after taking unpopular steps such as eliminating fuel subsidies and raising energy costs.

Majeed Aziz, a prominent Karachi businessman who has met Sharif many times, said Sharif’s “first term as prime minister does not bring him any plus points.” “He has minimal control or influence over his coalition partners.”

The fuel price saga highlights the skills Sharif may need as leader of another potentially unpopular coalition.

Sharif’s two main allies said they would only support the government on a case-by-case basis. The biggest partner, the centre-left Pakistan People’s Party, led by rival Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, refused to even join the cabinet.

unexpected reward

Shehbaz’s return to power was even unexpected. His brother Nawaz, a three-time prime minister who was considered the party’s front-runner for the top job, returned after four years in exile to counter Khan’s enduring popularity.

According to people familiar with Shehbaz’s family thinking, Nawaz’s party failed to win a majority in the election, prompting him to hand over the premiership to his younger brother as Shehbaz was seen as better suited to run a large coalition government. The person requested anonymity because the information is private.

This is unlikely to mean that the older brother has no say in policy. During the previous term as prime minister, Shehbaz often traveled to London to seek Nawaz’s advice.

Then there’s the military, which directly ruled the country from 1999 to 2008 and remains a powerful force in politics. Shehbaz has been at peace with the military, publicly praising army chief Gen. Asim Munir.

Still, the Sharif brothers came from a business family and did not enter politics until former Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto (Bilawal’s grandfather) nationalized the steel industry in the 1970s.

Their pro-business roots remain. In meetings with company executives, Shehbaz was more approachable, willing to listen and able to grasp economic issues, businessman Aziz said. When he had to raise pensions for government employees when he first became prime minister, he first checked whether there was fiscal space to do so.

chief minister

The younger Sharif also served for more than a decade as chief minister of Punjab, Pakistan’s most populous province, where he was known as a demanding and occasionally abrasive administrator who would call for site inspections at midnight and demand “first reports” from his team. 25 meetings”. “One hour” out of the day to get things done.

“He had a limitless capacity to work,” said Sibtain Fazal Halim, former director of the Lahore Development Authority, who worked with Sharif on projects including Lahore’s first metro line. infrastructure projects within. “Honest bureaucrats don’t slack off, and to them he is a hero.”

Officials coined the term “Shehbaz Speed” for the speed of his projects, which were executed by his hand-picked civil servants, recruited through personal phone calls and breakfast invitations at his residence in Lahore.

“The Shehbaz Sharif I know has a fighting spirit and has no time for stupid things,” said Umair Saif, the caretaker federal information technology and telecommunications minister who worked with Sharif in Punjab.

But Shehbaz was not very good at public speaking and relationship-building and never enjoyed the public support of his brother, which cost him politically, according to people who worked with him.

Shehbaz’s record has also been marred by corruption allegations. After the 1999 military coup, he was imprisoned and then deported to Saudi Arabia. He spent seven years in exile.

future challenges

Now his most pressing task may once again anger the public. Pakistan’s debt is classified as borderline sustainable, with record interest rates and slow growth. Inflation has eased but remains above 20%. Sharif must seek at least $6 billion in new loans from the International Monetary Fund, and the loan conditions may be stricter than before. Analysts say the prospect of tax hikes could spark more unrest.

Saif said his advantage was that he understood what could be achieved within Pakistan’s system.

“This country doesn’t need a revolution. This country needs someone who can wash dishes,” he said. “Shehbaz Sharif was tailor-made for this.”

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)