The Cabinet includes 10 provincial ministers, two advisors and a special assistant
Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Governor Faisal Karim Kundi took oath of office to a 13-member provincial cabinet in a ceremony at the Governor’s House.
Chief Minister Muhammad Sohail Afridi, Speaker Provincial Assembly Babar Saleem Swati, legislators from the national and provincial assemblies, party leaders and senior officials attended the event.
In a ceremony held at the Governor’s House in Peshawar, ten members of the provincial cabinet were sworn in as ministers.
Among those sworn in were Mina Khan Afridi, Arshad Ayub Khan, Amjad Ali, Aftab Alam Afridi, Fazal Shakoor Khan, Khaliq-ur-Rehman, Riaz Khan, Syed Fakhr Jahan, Aqibullah Khan and Faisal Khan. The Governor of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa congratulated the new ministers and extended his best wishes.
The ceremony was also attended by Chief Secretary Shahab Ali Shah, Inspector General of Police Zulfiqar Hameed, heads of administrative departments and various political and social personalities.
In the KP cabinet, Mazammil Aslam and Taj Muhammad will serve as advisors, while Shafee Jan will take up the responsibilities of special assistant to the chief minister.
Read: KP cabinet has only 10 members as per Imran’s instructions: CM Afridi
CM Afridi on Friday formed a 13-member cabinet, comprising 10 provincial ministers, two advisors and a special assistant. The CM revealed that the cabinet will initially comprise 10 ministers as per instructions received from Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf founder Imran Khan.
Delay in Cabinet announcement
Afridi had said he would not form a government without consulting Imran, which delayed the formation of the cabinet.
After the resignation of former chief minister Ali Amin Gandapur earlier this month, the PTI appointed Sohail Afridi as the new head of the provincial government. Afridi was sworn in on October 15, but despite repeated speculation about potential cabinet members, no official announcement has been made.
Also read: KP cabinet formation delayed as new CM awaits opinion from party founder
Under the Constitution, there is no fixed deadline for forming a cabinet after the election of a chief minister. According to Article 132, the chief minister advises the governor on ministerial appointments, while Article 133 authorizes the chief minister to temporarily manage administrative affairs in the absence of a cabinet.
In practice, however, the absence of a cabinet had paralyzed routine governance in the province. Most official matters were handled by the bureaucracy under the supervision of the chief secretary, effectively sidelining elected representatives.
In his maiden speech in the provincial assembly, CM Afridi reaffirmed his loyalty to the PTI founder, saying, “I voted in the name of Imran Khan and will govern according to his vision.” He further said that no cabinet appointments will be finalized until he personally consults with Khan.
Also read: PTI’s Sohail Afridi elected new KP CM
During Gandapur’s tenure, the KP had a 32-member cabinet comprising 16 ministers, four advisors and 12 special assistants. The prolonged delay in forming a new cabinet has drawn criticism from the opposition.
Opposition Leader Dr Ibadullah expressed astonishment at the government paralysis, saying, “It is shocking that an entire province is being run without a cabinet just because a ‘prisoner’ cannot be consulted. If all instructions go through Imran Khan’s tweets, the cabinet list could also be announced in the same manner. It is tragic that KP has been left without a functioning government for the past two weeks.”
