KP Governor Kundi administers oath to five new ministers
Why this matters: local context for readers following news across Pakistan and the region.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Governor Faisal Karim Kundi administered the oath to five newly appointed provincial ministers at a ceremony held in the Governor’s House on Sunday. The oath-taking followed a day after Governor Kundi approved a summary forwarded by Chief Minister Sohail Afridi’s office regarding the expansion of the provincial cabinet, which includes 18 additional members. Shafiullah Jan, Shakeel Ahmed, Tariq Mahmood, Nazir Abbasi and Arif Ahmadzai took the oath. However, minister-designate Adnan Qadri was unable to attend the ceremony as he was out of the country. The distribution of portfolios among the new ministers has not yet been announced. The ceremony was attended by Chief Minister Sohail Afridi, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly Speaker Babar Saleem Swati, Chief Secretary Shahab Ali Shah, provincial ministers, senior officials and other political figures. In a separate statement issued on Saturday, the Governor’s House confirmed approval of a broader cabinet expansion plan, which includes six ministers, four advisers and eight special assistants to the chief minister. The newly appointed advisers are Pir Musawir Shah, Liaquat Ali Khan, Humayun Khan and Mian Muhammad Umar. Meanwhile, the special assistants include Tariq Saeed, Muhammad Usman, Tufail Anjum, Iftikharullah Jan, Samiullah Khan, Malik Adeel Iqbal, Muhammad Khurshid and Muhammad Israr.