KP interim cabinet takes oath
"Sadly, this looks like a PDM cabinet," says PTI's Tamiur Jhagra
January 26, 2023
- Caretaker cabinet includes a total of 15 ministers.
- Portfolios not announced yet.
- PTI raises objections over cabinet members.
PESHAWAR: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Governor Haji Ghulam Ali Thursday administered oath to 14 ministers of the interim cabinet amid claims by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf that this "looks like a PDM cabinet".
According to a notification issued by the Administrative Department of the KP government, the governor has approved the interim cabinet under Article 224(1A) of the Constitution.
The ministers who took the oath today include former inspector general (IG) Syed Masood Shah, Barrister Sanwal Nazir, Bakht Nawaz, Fazal Elahi, Adnan Jalil, Shafi Ullah Khan, Shahid Khan Khattak, Haji Ghufran, Khushdil Khan Malik, Taj Muhammad Afridi, Muhammad Ali Shah, and Justice (retd) Irshad Qaiser, Manzoor Khan Afridi, Abdul Haleem Qasuriya, and Hamid Shah.
The ministers were sworn in at a ceremony at the governor's house. The portfolios of the interim cabinet members have yet not been announced. One minister — Manzoor Afridi — did not take oath as he is abroad, sources said.
However, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader and former provincial finance minister Taimur Jhagra has raised objections over the newly-appointed interim cabinet.
The PTI leader shared the notification of appointments over Twitter saying, "Sadly, this looks like a PDM cabinet, barring a couple of names..."
Caretaker CM KP
On January 20, the KP government and the opposition, in a surprising development, reached an agreement on the name of the interim chief minister in the province.
Former KP chief secretary Azam Khan's name was unanimously agreed upon in the meeting held to finalise the appointment of the province’s caretaker CM.
“Azam Khan is our consensus candidate for the post of caretaker chief minister. We have chosen a person who is acceptable to all,” said Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam Pakistan-Fazal (JUI-F) leader Akram Khan Durrani.
Commenting on the development, KP Chief Minister Mahmood Khan said the name of a caretaker chief minister was unanimously agreed upon for the first time in "history".
“We agreed on Azam Khan in consultation with our leader,” Khan said revealing PTI Chairman Imran Khan’s nod for the candidate.
