Bilawal to take oath as federal minister in PM Shehbaz's cabinet

Updated 27 Apr, 2022

Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari has confirmed that he will take oath as a federal minister in Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif's cabinet on Wednesday.

“I will take an oath [as a federal minister] and become part of the coalition government myself,” Bilawal said while addressing a press conference in Karachi after a meeting of the PPP's Central Executive Committee (CEC) on Tuesday.

Bilawal did not clearly say which portfolio he was going to get but hinted that he would be taking charge of the foreign ministry.

When a reporter sought his comment on the matters of foreign policy, Bilawal said he would soon hold a press conference in this regard.

Earlier, several PPP leaders in TV interviews had stated that Bilawal could become the foreign minister. But when PM Shehbaz’s 34-member cabinet took oath last week, Bilawal was not one of them.

Consequently, PPP’s Hina Rabbani Khar was notified as state minister for foreign affairs.

Bilawal to take oath as foreign minister soon: Kaira

Explaining his decision to join PM Shehbaz's cabinet, Bilawal said “one-sided decision making” was not possible and it was up to all the political parties to find solutions to the problems collectively.

“We have to understand that this isn't an ordinary coalition government. This unity government is a result of the parties on the opposition benches going to the treasury benches for the first time in the history of Pakistan.

“This is a very big challenge [and] everyone must play their role and share their burdens,” the PPP chairman said.

He hoped that as part of the team at times the PPP's priorities would be given weight and sometimes those of other political parties would take the forefront so solutions could be found together.

Bilawal congratulated the whole country for its "peaceful and democratic struggle against the selected regime", saying that history was created in the first-ever successful vote of no-confidence against a sitting prime minister.

“The beauty of this is that an undemocratic person (PTI Chairman Imran Khan) ... we sent him home and this is a political miracle and a historic political success.”

The PPP chairman also hailed the institutions, praising them for charting their course from “controversial institutions” to becoming “constitutional institutions,” adding that it was the duty of every citizen to expect and hope for this transition, which he termed a “ray of hope.”

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