–Finance Minister Shamshad Akhtar to head privatisation ministry, Interior Minister Azam Khan to supervise housing ministry
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Justice (r) Nasirul Mulk on Wednesday chaired a meeting of the caretaker federal cabinet at PM’s Office wherein he approved posting of new chief secretaries and police heads for all provinces.
The cabinet made the decision in consultation with the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) and the respective provincial governments to ensure free, fair and transparent elections in the country.
In Punjab, Akbar Hussain Durrani has been appointed as chief secretary and Dr Kaleem Imam as the inspector general of police (IGP). Durrani, a BPS-22 officer, presently posted as federal secretary education, hails from Quetta, Balochistan, is a career bureaucrat and is known for his apolitical and professional career. He has been sidelined during the five-year tenure of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) by the then blue-eyed Fawad Hassan Fawad. Capt (r) Zahid Saeed, a BPS-22 officer of Pakistan Administrative Service, presently posted as Punjab chief secretary, is transferred and directed to report to Establishment Division.
In Sindh, Azam Suleman Khan has been appointed as chief secretary whereas Amjad Javed Saleemi as the inspector general of police (IGP).
In Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), Naveed Kamran Baloch has been appointed as chief secretary and Mohammad Tahir as the IGP. In Balochistan, Akhtar Nazeer has been appointed as chief secretary and Mohsin Hasan Butt as the IGP. The incumbent IGPs have been called to Establishment Division.
Similarly, Aftab Akbar Durrani, a BPS-20 officer of Pakistan Administrative Service, presently posted as chief commissioner, ICT, under Interior Division, is transferred and directed to report to Establishment Division, while Joudat Ayaz, a BPS-20 officer of Pakistan Administrative Service, presently posted as joint secretary, Capital Division, is transferred and posted as Chief Commissioner, ICT.
Aurangzeb Haque, a BPS-22 officer of Administrative Service, presently posted as Balochistan chief secretary, is transferred and directed to report to Establishment Division, while Rizwan Memon, a BPS-22 officer of Administrative Service, presently posted as Sindh chief secretary, is transferred and directed to report to Establishment Division.
ADDITIONAL PORTFOLIOS GIVEN: Separately, PM Mulk has made changes to the six-member interim cabinet by granting additional portfolio of privatisation ministry to interim Finance Minister Shamshad Akhtar and Ministry of Housing’s to Interior Minister Mohammad Azam Khan.
According to a notification, Finance and Planning Minister Dr Shamshad Akhtar was given the additional portfolio of privatisation ministry and Interior Minister Mohammad Azam Khan was given the Housing and Works Ministry, said the notification issued by the Cabinet Office.
In another notification issued by the Joint Secretary of the Cabinet Dr Iram A Khan, the National Security Division was taken back from Abdullah Hussain Haroon. He will, however, continue to head the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The changes will be implemented from June 8.
Doctor Shamshad Akhtar has served as the coordinator of the five United Nations regional commissions. Formerly, Dr Shamshad Akhtar was the UN Secretary-General’s Special Senior Adviser on Economics and Finance, and Assistant Secretary-General for Economic Development at the Department of Economic and Social Affairs. Dr Shahshad Akhtar has previously served as governor of State Bank of Pakistan (SBP). In 2008, The Wall Street Journal Asia also recognised her as one of Asia’s top-ten professional women.
Abdullah Hussain Haroon has served as the Pakistan ambassador to the United Nations from September 2008 to December 2012. A scion of the Haroon family, he is a businessman, social activist and a former Sindh Assembly speaker who was a board member of various educational institutes, sports associations and charity organisations.
Hussain Haroon’s appointment as the permanent representative of Pakistan to the United Nations, replacing veteran Munir Akram, was controversial because Haroon had no prior experience in the Pakistan Foreign Service or international diplomacy.
Muhammad Azam Khan, an officer of the Pakistan Administrative Service (PAS), has served as the KP chief secretary. Azam Khan has served as FATA additional chief secretary, sports, tourism and youth affairs secretary, home and tribal affairs secretary and as Peshawar commissioner.
