Ex-premier Shahid Khaqan Abbasi has called for the country’s politicians to hold a national dialogue to bridge the “divides”.

In an interview with DawnNewsTV, the estranged PML-N leader said Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif should hold talks with “everyone”.

“He will have to sit together. It is a reality — whether you accept it or not — that the PTI has won seats. The fight is on how many,” he said.

Abbasi further said, “May God guide the PTI so that they understand what is a parliamentary system. They have entered it [so] should [play the role as] opposition; they are in such huge numbers.”

The politician asserted, “Until a consensus is reached, the country cannot be run.”