Pakistani Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani said Wednesday, saying he wanted to end an unpopular governor's rule in Punjab province. The government has been locked in a showdown with the main opposition leader Nawaz Sharif since the Supreme Court on Feb. 25 banned him and his brother Shahbaz from contesting elections. Shahbaz Sharif was immediately kicked out as chief minister in Punjab, where he was generally popular, and President Asif Ali Zardari put his own supporter, Governor Salman Taseer, in charge. Addressing newly elected senators at his official residence, Gilani said he recognized that the governor's rule in Punjab “has come under severe criticism”. “We do not want to prolong it, we want to end it as early as possible,” he said. “I will request the president, who is returning from Iran tomorrow, let the house decide and the party commanding a majority will form the government in Punjab,” said Gilani.
