The federal government on Friday assigned portfolios to the cabinet inductees sworn in at the end of February while also reassigning the portfolios of serving federal ministers, according to notifications issued by the Cabinet Division.
In an expansion on February 27, 12 federal ministers and nine ministers of state were sworn in by President Asif Ali Zardari. In addition, three advisers and four special assistants to the prime minister were also inducted.
The size of the federal cabinet doubled, increasing its members from 21 to 43, including 30 federal ministers, nine ministers of state and four advisers.
According to today’s notifications, available with Dawn.com, the appointments were made upon inductions as federal ministers and ministers of state, under clause (1) of Article 92 of the Constitution.
“The prime minister, under rule 3(4) of the Rules of Business, 1973, has been pleased to allocate the portfolios (business of the government) to the federal ministers and ministers of state,” the notifications read.
The appointments are as follows:
New federal ministers
- Dr Tariq Fazal Chaudhary — parliamentary affairs
- Ali Pervaiz Malik — petroleum
- Aurangzeb Khan Khichi — national heritage and culture
- Khalid Hussain Magsi — science and technology
- Muhammad Hanif Abbasi — railways
- Muhammad Mueen Wattoo — water resources
- Muhammad Junaid Anwar — maritime affairs
- Muhammad Raza Hayat Harraj — defence production
- Sardar Muhammad Yousaf — religious affairs & interfaith harmony
- Shaza Fatima Khawaja — information technology & telecommunication
- Rana Mubashar Iqbal — public affairs unit
- Syed Mustafa Kamal — national health services, regulations & coordination
New state ministers
- Malik Rasheed Ahmad Khan — national food security & research
- Abdul Rehman Khan Kanju — power with additional portfolio of public affairs unit
- Aqeel Malik — law & justice
- Bilal Azhar Kayani — railways
- Kesoo Mal Kheal Das — religious affairs & interfaith harmony
- Mohammad Awn Saqlain — overseas Pakistanis & human resource development
- Mukhtar Ahmad Malik — national health services, regulations & coordination
- Talal Chaudhry — interior & narcotics control
- Wajiha Qamar — federal education & professional training
More to follow