Former chief minister of Punjab, Shahbaz Sharif said that Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML–N) is the most popular party among women.
The efforts of PML-N’s Punjab government for women’s rights overshadow all the work for women’s emancipation in the last 65 years, he said.
Shahbaz Sharif was addressing a group of PML – N ticket hopefuls, PML – N Women Wing members and former female parliamentarians.
He said the Punjab government’s Women Empowerment Package had received international recognition, and that this package ensured that women received their due share of family inheritance.
The former CM added that government holdings, including land and houses that were transferred to the people, made both the husband and wife equal owners, which was a step no other government in Pakistan had taken. He also said that while the PML-N government raised the women’s quota in all government organisations by 33%, those who talk about bringing change explicitly stated that they wanted to get rid of women’s reserved seats in parliament.
He said this highlights the stark contrast between how PML – N sees women as a part of Pakistan’s future in comparison to its opponents. He also claimed that this is why the PML – N enjoys more support among female voters than any other party in Pakistan. This is evidenced by the fact that the PML – N received more applications for the women’s reserved seats than any other party, he said.
Published in The Express Tribune, April 7th, 2013.