ISLAMABAD: After days of intensive consultations between the ruling partners, President Asif Ali Zardari on Monday swore in a nineteen-member federal cabinet with several new faces.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Monday earlier today recommended to the President that he be inducted into the federal cabinet, according to a summary sent by Aiwan-e-Sadr.
Those recommended for federal ministries under Article 92(1) of the Constitution include PML-N lawmakers Ahsan Iqbal, Khawaja Asif, Qaiser Ahmed Sheikh, Riaz Hussain Pirzada, Rana Tanveer, Azam Nazeer Tarar, Jam Kamal Khan, The list also includes Amir Muqam, Awais Leghari and Attaullah Tarar while Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui of MQM-P and Abdul Aleem Khan of Istehkam-e-Pakistan Party.
In addition, Senators Ishaq Dar and Musadik Malik have also been recommended to be appointed as Federal Ministers under Article 91 of the Constitution as both will cease to be Senators on March 12 (tomorrow) after their Senate term ends.
The said clause empowers the prime minister to induct anyone who is not a member of parliament into the federal cabinet for a period of six months.
The other three names that have been recommended for induction as federal ministers – under clause 9 of article 91 – include Muhammad Aurangzeb, Ahad Khan Cheema and Syed Mohsin Raza Naqvi.
Meanwhile, Shaza Fatima is the only woman who has been recommended for inclusion in the federal cabinet. She will be sworn in as Minister of State under Article 92 Article 92 of the Constitution, the summary says.
Sources added that the prime minister had initially decided to keep his cabinet small, but more ministers would be inducted in the second phase.
The swearing-in of the federal cabinet comes a week after Prime Minister Shehbaz was sworn in as the country’s 24th prime minister, while President Zardari was sworn in as the head of state a day earlier in the presence of all dignitaries during an oath-taking ceremony.
Below is a list of names with their party affiliations and potential portfolios, according to sources:
