The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) will formally announce party chairman Imran Khan as candidate for the next prime minister of Pakistan.
“A parliamentary meeting of the party will take place tomorrow at a private hotel in Islamabad,” PTI spokesperson Fawad Chaudhry said.
All MNAs-elect of the party have been directed to be present at the meeting, he added.
“Imran Khan will be formally announced as the party’s nominee for premier during the meeting,” Chaudhry said.
Claiming that the PTI is now in the clear to form the government in the centre, Chaudhry said, “PTI’s seat tally in the National Assembly currently stands at 125 after the inclusion of independents.”
Allies and reserved seats will take the PTI tally to 174 seats in NA, he added.
Further after the support of Balochistan National Party-Mengal (BNP-M), the party will have 177 seats, Chaudhry said.
PTI had emerged in the lead with 116 NA seats during the July 25 polls.
On Thursday, however, the political parties aligned against PTI announced that they are fielding their own candidate for prime minister in Parliament.
The parties, including the PML-N, PPP, MMA, and ANP, decided to field their own consensus candidates for the prime minister, speaker and deputy speaker slots in the National Assembly.
Imran to form 15 to 20-member cabinet in first phase
The PTI has decided to form a 15-20 member federal cabinet in the first phase of government formation, party official informed media, after a high-level party meeting.
Party official said the party has decided to induct Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan in the federal cabinet.The MQM-P will have one minister in the federal cabinet, while an adviser would be inducted later.
Meanwhile, Imran has decided to not give any federal ministry to the members of Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q), however, its leader Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi would be nominated for Punjab Assembly speaker, the party official said.
They added that Balochistan Awami Party (BAP) will be given a federal ministry for their support in the centre, whereas the PTI will support BAP in getting its chief minister elected in Balochistan.
The PTI is also expected to get two ministries in the Balochistan cabinet.
On Friday, the PTI and MQM-P also signed a nine-point memorandum of understanding (MoU) for the formation of a new government in the centre.
