ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s ruling party lawmaker Iftikhar Gilani was sworn in as prime minister of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) on Friday, pledging to create jobs, improve health care and address governance challenges after elections marred by unrest and left incomplete in seven constituencies.
Gilani took the oath after securing 30 votes against 14 for Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) candidate Mukhtar Ahmed Abbasi in the 53-member regional legislature, where only 46 seats are currently filled. His Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) currently has the support of 32 lawmakers, including allies, while the PPP has 14 members.
“We have to take all the steps to ensure employment, so that our youth do not follow any other path, but rather a path that gives them respect, employment and a better future,” Gilani said in an address after taking the oath.
He said AJK faced governance and unemployment challenges and that his government would also focus on education and health care, arguing that progress in those areas could ease many of the pressures facing people in the region.
Gilani called for cooperation among lawmakers and said his government would draw on the experience of senior members and the determination of younger legislators to deliver on its commitments.
“We all need to walk together,” he said.
Gilani’s elevation to the premiership comes after an election process that was originally scheduled to take place across AJK on July 27 but was later divided into phases because of security concerns.
Polling went ahead in stages from July 27, but elections have still not been held in seven constituencies in Poonch and Sudhnoti districts after authorities postponed voting there over law-and-order concerns.
AJK Legislative Assembly Speaker Tariq Farooq announced Gilani’s victory earlier on Friday.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif also congratulated Gilani shortly after the result, crediting the PML-N’s victory to the party leadership.
Sharif said he hoped Gilani would play an active role in AJK’s development and public welfare and pledged continued federal government support for improving living standards in the region.
“The continuation of the democratic process in Azad Jammu and Kashmir is welcome,” Sharif said in a statement issued by his office.
