LAHORE: Ex-PM Nawaz Sharif’s daughter Maryam Nawaz on Saturday denied reports of differences within the Sharif family, insisting such rumors of infighting were “overblown”.
“It’s not a divided house. The Sharif family takes a lot of pride in family values and the family ethos,” she told the New York Times.
During the interview, she hesitated to directly address whether she had ambitions to become prime minister, saying it was her family’s decision that she take the party’s reins.
“People around me tell me I was meant for a certain role,” she said when asked whether she ever saw herself as a future prime minister. “I don’t know what tomorrow holds,” she said. “But I think I owe it to the people. I need to reach out to them.”
To a question about Shehbaz Sharif possibly becoming the next PM, she said: “He’s the most competent person. He’s my hero. I love him to death.”
Earlier, Hamza Shehbaz had admitted in a TV interview to political differences with Maryam and had expressed the hope that he would be able to bring Nawaz Sharif around to his point of view.
As for her personal role, Maryam said that the political chapter of her life has been a recent one. She described her upbringing as relatively traditional, and said that for a long time she “never saw herself in politics”.
She said that it was her grandfather who first recognised her administrative and political potential and appointed her to important positions in the family’s operations. Over the years, she said, her father, too, came to appreciate her abilities.
Talking about the recent court cases against the Sharif family, she insisted that the evidence to send her to prison was “missing” and that the victory in the September by-election was evidence that people still stood by her and her party. “The cases are politically motivated and nothing more than blatant political victimisation and pressure tactics,” she said. “People remain undeterred, and support for the Pakistan Muslim League has further galvanized. Prisons, disqualifications, sham trials, house arrests, court cases – been there, done that. I am undeterred, unperturbed, fighting,” she added.
She told the newspaper that her childhood was filled with singing and playing the piano. She was educated at the Convent of Jesus and Mary in Lahore, dropped out of medical school and finished a master’s degree in literature at the University of the Punjab. She said that she was lucky to have married young. “I gave all my time to my kids when they were growing up,” she said. “Now, I am independent. I have more time for myself, for my work. I could not be doing all this today if I still had small children.” She was also frank about enjoying the finer things in life – designer handbags, expensive jewelry. “I’m a woman, I’m human,” she said over lunch.
Later on Saturday, Maryam Nawaz clarified that the statement that she should be leading the party was wrongly ascribed to her as there was no such decision.
She took to Twitter, stating: “Nawaz Sharif is and will be leading Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N).” She added that she was not even an aspirant and happy to be working as PML-N worker. She said that the statement attributed to her in a recent interview – quoting her as saying it was her family’s decision that she hold the reins of the ruling Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz – was incorrect.
Published in Daily Times, October 29th 2017.
