ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s new federal cabinet on Tuesday took oath after the cabinet division issued a list of 30 federal ministers, four ministers of state and three advisers to the prime minister.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, the younger brother of three-time former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, was elected to the top political office of the country on April 11 after the ouster of Imran Khan through a no-trust vote in Pakistan’s parliament.
However, he could not unveil his cabinet earlier even about a week after his election, with a legal expert saying it rendered all policy actions and decisions by the prime minister “illegal” and “unconstitutional.”
The oath was administered to the cabinet members by Senate Chairman Sadiq Sanjrani while the PM sat right next to him.
Sharif is now leading a coalition government of over eight parliamentary parties, while Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party has tendered resignations en masse from the National Assembly, citing an alleged US conspiracy to topple his government.
The new prime minister was said to be struggling with the distribution of ministries among coalition partners as per their strength in the National Assembly until recently.
“The consultation [for the cabinet] is complete and I will be announcing the details shortly,” Marriyum Aurangzeb, who speaks for Sharif’s Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) party, told reporters Monday afternoon.
Khawaja Muddassir, a foreign media coordinator of Jamiat-e-Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) that is one of the key coalition partners of the government, said cabinet members would be taking oath on Tuesday.
“Our four lawmakers will be part of the federal cabinet,” he told Arab News, dismissing reports of a deadlock on the distribution of portfolios.
“The portfolios of our ministers are also decided and will be announced after the oath-taking ceremony,” Muddassir said.
The JUI-F lawmakers, expected to be the part of the cabinet, include Maulana Asad Mehmood, Senator Talha Mehmood, Abdul Wasay and Abdul Shakoor.
Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, chairman of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), is also said to have been shortlisted for the post of the foreign minister, though his name is not included in the list issued by the cabinet division.
Legal experts say the prime minister’s policy actions and decisions would remain “illegal” and “unconstitutional” in the absence of the cabinet.
“The constitution clearly says the government means a federal cabinet,” Barrister Ahmed Pansota told Arab News. “So, all government decisions must be endorsed and approved by the cabinet.”
He said the Supreme Court had also made it clear through a judgment that a prime minister alone could not take policy decisions as the government would remain incomplete without the cabinet.
“The prime minister is required under the law and constitution to unveil his cabinet at the earliest to run all state functions smoothly,” Pansota added.
