Caretaker KPK CM explains to cabinet members role, mandate of interim govt

PESHAWAR: The 9th meeting of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa caretaker cabinet was held here on Wednesday, with Caretaker Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Muhammad Azam Khan in the chair.

Besides caretaker cabinet members, the meeting was attended by Chief Secretary Nadeem Aslam Chaudhry and concerned administrative secretaries. In his address to the participants of the meeting, the Chief Minister welcomed the new cabinet members.

Touching upon the role and mandate of the caretaker government as prescribed in the constitution and Election Commission Act 2017, the Chief Minister said that the role, responsibilities, and dos and don’ts of the caretaker setup were very much clear in the relevant provisions of the constitution and ECP Act, adding that the caretaker government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa will keep itself restricted to its constitutional and legal role, is a purely apolitical and impartial setup, and will perform its duties without any sort of political affiliation.

The agenda for the meeting encompassed seven key points, notably the approval of project revisions, the establishment of a forensic science laboratory at Peshawar, the nomination of an administrative judge for anti-terrorism courts, and fixing matters relating to the Police Public School teachers’ case in court.

The meeting’s deliberations encompassed the approval of supplementary funding for the Forensic Science Laboratory in Peshawar and revisions to PC1 for the Janikhel Bannu Police Station. These measures are anticipated to contribute significantly to counterterrorism efforts and the maintenance of law and order in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Furthermore, the cabinet approved the nomination of Senior Judge Justice Ishtiaq Ibrahim Khan as an administrative judge for anti-terrorism courts, a recommendation put forth by the Chief Justice of the Peshawar High Court.

The cabinet also decided to forward the PC-I for the Women and Children Liaquat Memorial Teaching Hospital in Kohat and the National Programme for Improvement of Water Courses in Pakistan, Phase-II projects to the Provincial Development Working Party (PDWP) for reassessment.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2023