Who's Omar Ayub nominated by Imran Khan's party as Pakistan PM face
He joined the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), aligning himself with the cricketer-turned-politician in Feb 2018, and won the general elections
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), the political party led by former Prime Minister Imran Khan, who is incarcerated right now, has nominated Omar Ayub as its candidate for the position of prime minister.
Omar Ayub, the third generation from the family of former Pakistan President Field Marshal Ayub Khan, joined Pakistan Muslim League (Q) along with his father, Gohar Ayub Khan, a few months before the 2002 general elections.
Political debut
“Omar made his debut in the country's National Assembly during the 2002 elections and later served in Shaukat Aziz's cabinet as the state minister for finance. He claimed credit for bringing significant projects, including those related to natural gas, electricity, and road infrastructure worth billions, to Haripur,” Dawn News reported.
Even though Omar faced a defeat against PML-N’s Sardar Mushtaq Khan in 2008, he returned to the assembly for a brief period in 2015 following an apex court-ordered re-election in his constituency. During a subsequent by-election, he refrained from contesting due to his mother's illness.
Entry into PTI
Omar joined the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), aligning himself with Imran Khan, in February 2018. He was successfully re-elected to the National Assembly from Constituency NA-17 (Haripur) as a PTI candidate in the 2018 general elections. Subsequently, he was inducted into the federal cabinet headed by Imran Khan.
Omar served in various positions including minister for economic affairs, minister for energy, and minister for petroleum. Over the years, he also held several important positions within the party.
Fighting against odds
Independent candidates supported by Imran Khan have secured 92 seats in last week's election, emerging as the largest group. However, the chances of his political party forming the government appear bleak. Imran’s aides were at loggerheads with the powerful military, alleging that the vote was rigged.
On the other hand, the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) has named Shehbaz Sharif, a former prime minister and Nawaz Sharif's brother, as their nominee. He is anticipated to assume the prominent position, seemingly endorsed by the influential military establishment, and is expected to lead a coalition government.
The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) of former foreign minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari backed the choice but did not commit to joining the government, indicating it would support a minority government from the outside.
