Former Foreign Minister Sardar Aseff who now belongs to the PPP, has complained that despite Prime Minister Gilani has promised to appoint him Foreign Minister, he was not appointed. Instead Ms Hina Khar was appointed a new Foreign Minister. Nonetheless, he appreciated her performance as State Foreign Minister but doubted on her ability to handle the matters as a full minister.
Mr Aseff may remember he was appointed as Foreign Minister in the past when he was in PML(J) as part of a bargain during Benazir Bhutto government. Otherwise, there was no possibility of his appointment.
Later, he joined PPP and was appointed as Deputy Chairman, Planning Commission where he manoeuvred to snatch gigantic Thar coal deposits in Sindh by categorically violating the constitution that envisages coal as a provincial subject. Not only this but he misguided PM Gilani and got such unconstitutional notification signed from him. Nonetheless, after hue and cry of the Sindh government, the decision was revoked.
Had there been law in Pakistan, such a person should have been behind the bars. Strangely, he was promoted to the full fledged federal minister of education instead of being punished him for violating the constitution.
I welcome the decision of PM Gilani not to appoint Sardar Aseff as foreign minister because we do not need a foreign minister who possesses feelings of regionalisms.
MOHAMMAD KHAN SIAL
Karachi