Re: Naya KPK/IK forms KPK Advisory council (merged)
and wrangling goes on… pretty much disappointing start. lack of agreement, one may show and blame of nepotism
i hope they solve this issue soon and get to work.
PTI fails to break deadlock over portfolios - thenews.com.pk
PESHAWAR: The selection of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa cabinet has bogged down the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) as it failed to make a decision even 10 days after the election of the chief minister.
The education ministry has become a bone of contention between PTI and one of its allies, Jamaat-e-Islami (JI). Also, the deadlock over the selection of cabinet members belonging to the PTI is hobbling the provincial government’s authority to deal with the crises and threats that have crippled Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
The province is being run only by the chief minister and the focus remains on consultations to pick ministers instead of making strategies to tackle challenges. Two senior ministers have been sworn in, but they have not formally assumed their portfolios and have been unable to focus on their job.
Leaders in PTI, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the formation of cabinet had been stymied by PTI-JI disagreement over the education ministry and internal wrangling over portfolios. Reportedly, PTI had promised the JI the education portfolio but later backtracked due to criticism on social media, mostly by its own members.
The JI is prodding Imran Khan to allocate the portfolio to it, or give it health ministry, but the PTI wants to keep both.The issue of education ministry and PTI’s internal wrangling over cabinet slots has crippled the ability of PTI and JI to finalise the cabinet formation.
Provincial level leadership of both the parties have been shuttling between Peshawar and Lahore to bring solutions from Imran Khan, who is taking rest after his injury in the election campaign. He also appears to be reluctant to make decisions, which is lingering the issue.
“JI, Qaumi Watan Party and Awami Jamhoori Ittehad Pakistan are not the problem. The internal wrangling of PTI over portfolios is really hindering the cabinet formation,” said a PTI leader, who requested not to be named. “Different regions are also vying to get most of the ministries. And the agreement doesn’t exist,” he added.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Pervez Khattak has been boasting that seeking ministries isn’t the goal of PTI’s MPAs; rather they wanted implementation of PTI agenda. However, his government’s formation has been held hostage to the desire of most of the PTI MPAs to become minsters and the persistent jockeying for portfolios.
Another leader said the cabinet has been finalised and would be announced in a day or so. However, he failed to give any reason for the delay in choosing the cabinet members. He said Shaukat Ali Yousafzai, Shah Farman, Israrullah Gandapur, Ali Amin Gandapur, Atif Khan, Yousaf Ayub, Sardar Idrees and Dr Amjad Ali could be picked as ministers.
Another leader, who also requested anonymity, gave a similar list of ministers. He said Shaukat Yousafzai would be minister for information, Shah Farman for C&W, Yasin Khalil for local government, Atif for health or excise, Israrullah Gandapur for law and Yousaf Ayub also for either health or excise. He said Ali Amin Gandapur is also being considered for excise and taxation and Dr Amjad Ali from Swat as a minister with an important portfolio. Ziaullah Afridi or Ishtiaq Urmar could be appointed as an adviser to the chief minister.
One of these leaders said the chief minister was making efforts to bring ‘his own cronies’ to the cabinet. According to him, Pervez Khattak was interested in including Mian Jamsheduddin, who comes from Nowshera, Yasin Khalil from rural Peshawar, Shakil Ahmad from Malakand Agency and Israrullah Gandapur from Dera Ismail Khan in the cabinet.
One leader claimed Dr Mehr Taj Roghani, who was interested in health ministry, was offered the culture ministry, but she had refused the offer.
After meeting Imran Khan in Lahore along with JI’s Sirajul Haq, Pervez Khattak Sunday said they would be able to finalise the cabinet in the next three to four days, an indication that the deadlock would continue for some more days. Khattak was the first chief minister in the country to take oath of his office, but he has failed to finalize his cabinet.
“He should have taken the decision by now. It shows Pervez Khattak’s lack of leadership. If he cannot pick the cabinet, how is he going to hold local government elections within three months and taking other crucial decisions,” a PTI leader said.
**One of the leaders said many MPAs were aspiring and lobbying for ministries, but it was not an issue. “The issue would be settled once Imran Khan picks the ministers. No one would then be able to do anything about it,” he added. **
Shaukat Yousafzai, who is the government’s spokesman, could not be reached on his cellphone for comments on delay in making the cabinet.