NEW DELHI: Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), has decided not to join Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s federal cabinet, either before or after the presentation of the budget in parliament.
As per reports by The Express Tribune, this decision comes despite reports suggesting that the PPP had been invited by the ruling party to join the coalition and was offered ministries in exchange.Sources also mentioned that during a recent meeting between PM Shehbaz Sharif and Bilawal, the topic of joining the federal cabinet was not discussed. Instead, Bilawal emphasized the importance of making wheat purchases mandatory.
However, some insiders had previously revealed that the ruling PML-N and PPP were close to finalizing a power-sharing agreement, with Bilawal likely to return as the country’s foreign minister for the second time. They claimed that Bilawal, who was initially hesitant to join the cabinet, had agreed to take on the role of foreign minister. The two parties were reportedly working on the details and timing of the PPP’s formal induction into the federal cabinet.
Earlier this month, the premier and Bilawal met at the PM’s House to finalize the names of governors for Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and Balochistan. An official statement indicated that they discussed the overall political situation in the country.
Despite the prime minister and other parties in the ruling coalition wanting the PPP to join the cabinet, a PPP leader maintained that the party leadership had not yet decided to change its previous stance on the matter. The leader described the reports suggesting that the PPP would join the cabinet after the budget as “speculative,” stating that no such discussion had taken place during the meetings between the two sides.