Federal Minister for Petroleum and Natural Resources Dr Asim Hussain in last cabinet meeting snubbed Cabinet Division Secretary Nargis Sethi–commonly called ‘Pakistani Conodoleeza Rice (Condi)’ by bureaucrats and politicians alike since she is the prime minister’s favourite–when the latter raised concerns over the usefulness of cabinet meetings, Pakistan Today has learnt reliably.
A source in the federal cabinet said Nargis expressed dissatisfaction on the functioning of cabinet and said it was redundant. “She said that the agendas of the cabinet meetings had nothing important and the cabinet usually met to vet Pakistan’s memorandum of understandings (MoU) with other countries,” said the source.
“She said no crucial decisions had been taken by the cabinet and she advised Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani to issue directions for making the cabinet meetings meaningful,” the source added. According to the source, Nargis’ criticism on cabinet meetings and their agendas stunned every one in the house. The source said Hussain interrupted her and rebutted Nargis’ apprehensions with solid arguments.
“Dr Asim Hussain rebutted Pakistani Condi’s assertions saying that the federal cabinet was not holding meetings uselessly and the cabinet had taken many important decisions on various subjects in the past,” the source added. “Dr Asim Hussain said that many crucial policy matters used to be decided on the platforms of Economic Coordination Committee of the Cabinet and Defense Cabinet Committee which were both integral parts and extensions of the federal cabinet,” the source further said, adding that all the ministers sitting in the meeting fully endorsed Asim’s arguments.
The source said that the cabinet members also started whispering with one another on Nargis’ remarks, saying that she was trying to grow bigger than her boots by showing her efficiency before the PM. “In fact, she tried to prove before the PM that the ministers of his cabinet were incapable of setting appropriate agendas of their respective ministries for cabinet meetings,” said a minister seeking not to be attributed.
It is to be mentioned here that some bureaucrats and parliamentarians had started calling Nargis as de facto prime minister when she was principal secretary to PM few months back. Background discussions and numerous interactions with top officials reveal that they still have feelings of jealousy for Sethi and Khushnud Lashari.
They criticize Lashari in private sittings for his desire to continue wearing two caps including one of the principal secretary to PM and the other in the form of holding additional charge of establishment division secretary which was given to him by the premier when he made Sohail Ahmed OSD on complying with Supreme Court orders on July 26 this year.