Sharjah 24 – AFP: Pakistan's new Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said Thursday the country's economy had stagnated under his predecessor Imran Khan, setting the tone for possibly months of bitterness before an election that must be held by October next year.
Sharif, sworn in Monday after Khan was ousted by a no-confidence vote in parliament, is still finalising his cabinet but has called for "Pakistan speed" to hurry along development projects and fix the economy.
On Thursday the 70-year-old notorious workaholic visited a metro bus project in Rawalpindi and complained about the pace of infrastructure development.
"Almost all sectors of economy remained stagnant under IK," he later tweeted, referring to his predecessor by his initials.
His early-morning visit came after Khan on Wednesday night held a huge rally in Peshawar.
Khan -- along with most of his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) lawmakers -- quit the national assembly after losing Sunday's no-confidence vote, saying he would take his fight to the people to press for an early election.
On Wednesday, Khan said he would stage twice-weekly rallies across the country until a new poll date was set.
"Young people, get ready, I will take to the streets with you. I will go out in every city, and I will continue to go out until they are forced to hold election."
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