Sheikh Waqas Akram (; born 26 August 1976) is a Pakistani politician and a member of the

National Assembly of Pakistan The National Assembly of Pakistan, also referred to as ''Aiwān-ē-Zairīñ'', is the lower house of the bicameralism, bicameral Parliament of Pakistan, with the upper house being the Senate of Pakistan, Senate. As of 2023, the National Assem ...

from NA-109 Jhang-II since 29 February 2024. He previously served as a member of the National Assembly from November 2002 to November 2007 and from March 2008 to March 2013. He joined the PTI in early 2023 and was appointed as the Information Secretary of the party, which he is serving as today.

Early life and education

Sheikh Waqas Akram was born on 26 August 1976 in

Jhang Jhang ( Punjabi / ; ; ) is the capital city of Jhang District in central Punjab, Pakistan. Situated on the east bank of the Chenab river, it is the 13th most populous city of Pakistan. Etymology The historical name of the city and dis ...

Punjab Punjab (; ; also romanised as Panjāb or Panj-Āb) is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia. It is located in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising areas of modern-day eastern Pakistan and no ...

. His father Sheikh Muhammad Akram is also a prominent politician who was later described as having a political duo with his son Waqas. He completed his

matriculation Matriculation is the formal process of entering a university, or of becoming eligible to enter by fulfilling certain academic requirements such as a matriculation examination. Australia In Australia, the term ''matriculation'' is seldom used no ...

from the

Abbottabad Public School Abbottabad Public School (APS) (Urdu: ایبٹ آباد پبلک سکول; Pashto: ایبټ اباد پبلک سکول), formerly Railway Public School and Abbottabad Public School and College, is a public, all boys, boarding school for 7th to 12t ...

. He failed his A-level education, and subsequently tried to pass intermediate from

Government College, Lahore The Government College University (colloquially known as GCU; Punjabi, Urdu: ) is a public research university in Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan. Founded as Government College, Lahore, in 1864 under British administration, it became a university i ...

, but failed that too.

Disqualification for fake degrees

He was disqualified for some time as he had reportedly submitted fake A-levels certificate while filing his nomination papers for elections. He has submitted multiple fake educational documents, and committed

perjury Perjury (also known as forswearing) is the intentional act of swearing a false oath or falsifying an affirmation to tell the truth, whether spoken or in writing, concerning matters material to an official proceeding."Perjury The act or an insta ...

for which he was disqualified for a long time.

Political career

Early tenure (2002–2013)

He entered politics as a member of the

Pakistan Muslim League (Q) The Pakistan Muslim League (Quaid e Azam Group) ; ''Pākistān Muslim Līg (Qāf)'', Acronyms: PML(Q), PML-Q, PMLQ, "Q League" (officially registered as the Pakistan Muslim League) is a political party in Pakistan. As of the 2024 parliamentary e ...

(PML-Q) in 2002 and won a seat in the

2008 Pakistani general election General elections were held in Pakistan on 18 February 2008 to elect members of the 13th National Assembly and the four Provincial Assemblies. On 3 November 2007 President Pervez Musharraf enacted a state of emergency; elections were initia ...

from NA-89 Jhang on a PML-Q ticket. Following his election as a member of the

, he was made Minister of State for Overseas Pakistanis Labor and Manpower in the PPP-led Gillani government as a coalition partner from 2011 to 2012. He then served as Federal Minister of Education and Trainings in the Raja Pervaiz Ashraf government from 2012 to 2013, again as a coalition partner to PPP, while still being a member of the PML-Q.

Transition to PML-N and Independent candidacy (2013–2023)

In March 2013, in the run up to the

2013 Pakistani general election General elections were held in Pakistan on Saturday 11 May 2013 to elect the members of the List of members of the 14th National Assembly of Pakistan, 14th National Assembly of Pakistan, National Assembly and the four Subdivisions of Pakistan, Pr ...

, he joined the

Pakistan Muslim League (N) The Pakistan Muslim League (N) or (PML(N)) is a Centre-right politics, centre-right, Conservatism in Pakistan, conservative political party in Pakistan. It is currently the third-largest party in the Senate of Pakistan, Senate and the larges ...

(PML-N). His decision to join the PML-N came while still being an incumbent lawmaker and minister for the PML-Q. He could not take part in 2013 general elections because a returning officer rejected his nomination papers based on a letter sent by the

Higher Education Commission of Pakistan The Higher Education Commission (colloquially known as HEC) is a statutory, statutory body formed by the Government of Pakistan which was established in 2002 under the Chairmanship of Atta-ur-Rahman (chemist), Atta-ur-Rahman. Its main functions ...

(HEC) about his declared fake degrees. He later challenged his rejection in a higher court tribunal which allowed him to contest the election, though he decided not to contest the elections. Prior to the

2018 Pakistani general election General elections were held in Pakistan on 25 July 2018 to elect the members of the 15th National Assembly and the four Provincial Assemblies. The three major parties were Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), led by Imran Khan, the Pakistan Muslim ...

, he was offered to run as a candidate of the

PML-N The Pakistan Muslim League (N) or (PML(N)) is a Centre-right politics, centre-right, Conservatism in Pakistan, conservative political party in Pakistan. It is currently the third-largest party in the Senate of Pakistan, Senate and the larges ...

from NA-115 Jhang-II. Despite being described as a loyal and strong member of the PML-N, Sheikh Waqas Akram refused to contest on a PML-N ticket, and instead attempted to run in the same constituency for the

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) is a political party in Pakistan established in 1996 by cricketer and politician Imran Khan, who served as the country's prime minister from 2018 to 2022. The party is led by Gohar Ali Khan since late 2023. ...

(PTI). Waqas was denied a PTI ticket, as the PTI selected

Ghulam Bibi Bharwana Ghulam Bibi Bharwana (; born 5 May 1970) is a Pakistani politician who had been a member of the National Assembly of Pakistan from August 2018 till August 2023. Previously she was a member of the National Assembly from 2002 to May 2018. Early li ...

to run from NA-115 Jhang-II. Following this, Waqas Akram opted to run as an

Independent candidate An independent politician or non-affiliated politician is a politician not affiliated with any political party or bureaucratic association. There are numerous reasons why someone may stand for office as an independent. Some politicians have polit ...

from the constituency but failed to win against Ghulam Bibi Bharwana and PTI.

Affiliation with PTI (2023–present)

On 11 March 2023, Waqas Akram joined the

declaring allegiance to the '' Haqiqi Azadi March'' and the party's manifesto. On 9 February 2024, amid the

2024 Pakistani general election General elections, originally scheduled to be held in 2023, were held in Pakistan on 8 February 2024 to elect the members of the List of members of the 16th National Assembly of Pakistan, 16th National Assembly of Pakistan, National Assembly. The ...

, independent candidate Sheikh Waqas Akram, supported by the

(PTI), emerged victorious in the

National Assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the repr ...

seat for constituency NA-109 Jhang, as reported by

Geo News Geo News () is a old technology foundation Pakistani news channel owned by the Jang Media Group. It was launched in October 2002 as the news and current affairs program was under its flagship channel Geo TV, which later in 2004, Geo TV decided ...

. The election saw Waqas Akram garner 176,586 votes, defeating his closest rival, Sheikh Yaqub of the

, by a margin of 114,799 votes. Waqas Akram's campaign, which focused on major problems of

with the youth, resonated with voters, leading to his decisive win. With this victory, Waqas Akram becomes the new representative for NA-109 Jhang. Waqas' father, Sheikh Muhammad Akram is currently a member of the Punjab Assembly from the PTI-backed

Sunni Ittehad Council The Sunni Ittehad Council (''Ittehad'' in Urdu for "unity", from ''al-Ittihad'' in Arabic meaning "united" or "jointly") is a political alliance of Islamic political and Barelvi religious parties in Pakistan which represents followers of the sch ...

Information Secretary PTI Sheikh Waqas Akram

References

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Akram, Sheikh Waqas Pakistan Muslim League (Q) politicians Living people Politicians from Punjab, Pakistan People from Jhang District Central Queensland University alumni Government College University, Lahore alumni 1976 births Pakistani MNAs 2002–2007 Pakistani MNAs 2024–2029