PESHAWAR: In a surprising note, the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa government on Sunday withdrew status of three provincial ministers and two special assistants to the chief minister, without giving any reasons.Interestingly, nobody in the KP government was available to talk to the media and explain why the status of three advisors to the chief minister was first upgraded to the status of ministers and then what prompted the government to issue another notification within five days to withdraw their status.The government firstly issued a notification and upgraded status of three advisors to the chief minister, including Ajmal Wazir, Ziaullah Bangash and Himayatullah Khan.Ziaullah was made minister for elementary and secondary education, Himayatullah given the portfolio of energy and power, while Ajmal Wazir was appointed the provincial minister for supervision and coordination of the merged tribal districts affairs and a spokesman for the KP government.Similarly, special assistant to the chief minister, Abdul Karim Khan, was made the minister for industries and commerce while the second special assistant, Kamran Khan Bangash, was given the portfolio of science and technology and information technology.And only five days after their status was upgraded, the government had to issue a notification, withdrawing the status of all of them.Senior PTI leaders in Peshawar told The News on condition of anonymity that even Chief Minister Mahmood Khan was not aware of the development when a notification was issued about upgradation of his advisors and special assistants.“The chief minister was in Saudi Arabia with the prime minister and was performing Umrah when someone told him about the development back in Pakistan. He was stunned and said he had not issued any such order,” a senior PTI leader close to the chief minister told The News on Sunday.He said upon his arrival in Peshawar, he asked the chief secretary to issue a notification and withdraw status of the advisors and special assistants.“Also, after the 18th Amendment, the size of the provincial cabinet can’t cross the number of 14 ministers. There are already 13 ministers, so legally we can’t accommodate more ministers in the cabinet,” one provincial minister told The News on condition of anonymity.Some insiders, however, said the chief minister had earlier agreed to upgrade the status of his advisor for tribal districts, Ajmal Wazir and that’s why the government had issued a separate notification about him.“Actually Ajmal Wazir needed blue passport (official passport) for which his status was upgraded to the level of provincial minister. And when other advisors and special assistants came to know about the development, they somehow managed to get their status upgraded,” said an insider of the government. He said the chief minister was left with no other option but to cancel up-gradation of his advisors and special assistants.However, sources close to Ajmal Wazir denied these reports, saying that he was not aware of the development when reports about him published in the media.“I think Ajmal is holding a key position in the government and getting him a blue passport is not a major issue,” said a PTI activist close to him. He, however, said the issue had caused “huge” embarrassment to the chief minister and his administration.
06-03-2019, 03:14 PM
KP withdraws status of three ministers, two special assistants
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