Pakistan’s all-powerful interior minister Mohsin Naqvi, who has close ties with Asim Munir, cleared the air on speculation over the survival of the Shehbaz Sharif government and his remark that the governance system has ‘collapsed’.
Mohsin Naqvi and Shehbaz Sharif
New Delhi, UPDATED: Aug 6, 2026 10:56 IST
Pakistan’s all-powerful interior minister Mohsin Naqvi said Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif would complete his five-year tenure even though he doubled down on his remark that the governance system has “collapsed”. The startling remark by Naqvi, who has close ties with army chief Asim Munir, at the Pakistan Economic Summit last week had generated fervent speculation about the survival of the Sharif government. It had also laid bare the fault lines within Pakistan’s hybrid political structure.
Speaking to reporters on Thursday, Naqvi cleared the air on the future of the PML-N government. “The future for the government is the completion of its five-year tenure. Shehbaz Sharif will remain the prime minister for five years. He will complete his five-year term,” Naqvi said, according to a report in The Dawn.
Regarding Pakistan, such statements, however, should be taken with a pinch of salt. The historically brief tenures of civilian governments in Pakistan are no secret. In fact, since 1947, no Pakistani prime minister has completed a full five-year term. Blame it on military coups, assassinations, and forced resignations.
MOHSIN NAQVI STIRS STORM IN PAKISTAN The interior minister, who also controls the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), had stirred a hornet’s nest with two back-to-back sensational statements.
At the Pakistan Economic Summit, Naqvi declared that the country’s governance system had “collapsed” and called for new provinces to handle the crisis.
A couple of days later, he claimed to have un
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