Dark horse senator appointed caretaker PM

ISLAMABAD: Senator Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar was appointed as the eighth caretaker prime minister of Pakistan, following consensus was reached between the outgoing PM and leader of the opposition here on Saturday.

President Dr Arif Alvi signed the advice received from the outgoing PM Shehbaz Sharif and the opposition leader Raja Riaz on Saturday afternoon.

“President Arif Alvi has approved appointment of Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar as the caretaker prime minister. He approved the appointment under Article 224 (1A) of the Constitution.”

Senator Kakar is currently the chairman of the Balochistan Awami Party (BAP), and he is widely regarded as an intellectual. He holds a Master’s degree in Political Science and Sociology, and he is an alumnus of the University of Balochistan.

Senator Anwarul Haq would have to resign from the upper House prior to taking oath as the caretaker premier. The appointment has ended rumours and speculations about the selection of the caretaker premier from amongst Jalil Abbas Jillani, Dr Abdul Hafeez Shaikh, Sadiq Sanjrani, Senator Ishaq Dar and others.

The caretaker PM is most likely to take oath of his office on Monday, August 14, and he will be the chief guest at the flag-hoisting ceremony on Pakistan’s 76th Independence Day.

Soon after approval of the advice regarding his appointment, the caretaker PM-designate was given premier’s protocol. According to sources, as part of the security measures, he was being shifted to the Punjab House. He would shift to the Prime Minister’s House once the president would administer oath to him.

Anwarul Haq’s appointment has been welcomed largely across the board, as politicians particularly believe that his selection as caretaker premier would help end sense of deprivation among the people of Balochistan. Senate Chairman Sadiq Sanjrani also hails from Balochistan.

Anwarul Haq was elected as a member of the Senate in 2018 and he was going to complete his tenure in March, next year. He also worked as chairperson of the Senate Standing Committee on Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resources Development, and as a member of the Business Advisory Committee, Finance and Revenue, Foreign Affairs and Science and Technology. He also served as spokesperson for the Balochistan provincial government, prior to his election to the upper house of the Parliament.

Earlier, the PM Office said that the consultation process between the outgoing Prime Minister and the opposition leader of the dissolved assembly was completed amicably on Saturday. The two leaders held their second round of consultations at the PM House on Saturday. “Both the prime minister and the opposition leader signed the summary and sent it to the president,” the statement said.

Shehbaz Sharif vacated the PM House on Saturday. He also thanked Raja Riaz over his cooperation in successful completion of the consultation process, and his role as the opposition leader during the last 16 months. Later, talking to the media, Raja Riaz said the name of Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar was proposed by him and the PM agreed to it. He said the main purpose was that the caretaker PM should be from a smaller province and he should be a non-controversial personality. He said the aim was also to remove a sense of deprivation among the people of smaller provinces. At a dinner hosted by the outgoing prime minister at the PM House on Friday night, the allies of former coalition government also reached a consensus that the caretaker PM should be taken from a smaller province.

Meanwhile, Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) welcomed the appointment of Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar as caretaker PM, saying the party had authorised Shehbaz Sharif to propose the name of caretaker premier. “The PPP gave priority to the appointment of caretaker prime minister as per the constitutional role of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and opposition leader,” said Secretary Information, PPP, Faisal Karim Kundi, while giving the PPP’s viewpoint on the development. He said the PPP supports every constitutional and democratic process and would not compromise on it.

Former federal minister Shazia Marri, while commenting on the development, said it was a wrong impression that the PPP leadership had reservations over the caretaker PM’s appointment. She said the coalition partners had authorized Shehbaz Sharif to name the caretaker premier.

Senate Chairman Sadiq Sanjrani and Speaker National Assembly Raja Pervaiz Ashraf also congratulated Kakar over his appointment. “Appointment of Anwarul Haq as caretaker prime minister is good. He has always played a positive role in the upper house of the parliament,” Sanjrani said. Raja Pervaiz Ashraf expressed the hope that Anwarul Haq would be able to ensure timely and transparent elections in the country.

He also made a telephonic call to interim PM-designate on Saturday and both found themselves united over democracy and progress of the country.

The NA speaker extended felicitations to Anwarul Haq and said it was a moment of pride that a seasoned and visionary politician had been nominated as the interim premier. Anwarul Haq thanked Raja Pervaiz Ashraf over his well wishes and both resolved to support and work for democracy and progress of the country.

Senator Abdul Qadir, chairman of the Senate Standing Committee on Petroleum and Natural Resources, who also hails from Balochistan, also welcomed the appointment, saying his prime responsibility would be transparent and timely general election. Also, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf said on Saturday Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar was expected to ensure fair and transparent elections in three-month constitutional period after assuming his office as the caretaker premier.

In its reaction to the keenly-awaited development, the PTI claimed to be the largest political party in the country inside and outside parliament and that as per the Constitution, it said there was no consultation by the PM at any level on the issue of nomination of caretaker PM. “Senator Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar’s nomination has been done in consultation with the puppet PM and the fake leader of the opposition in the National Assembly. Now that Senator Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar has been nominated as caretaker prime minister, he has a huge responsibility,” the party noted.

The PTI expressed the hope that the caretaker prime minister would not allow any further attacks on the constitutional and democratic rights of people. Free, fair and transparent elections, it emphasised, was the key to implementation of the Constitution in letter and spirit and for survival and continuity of democracy in the country.

Likewise, providing opportunities to all the political parties to campaign in a fair environment, it noted, was one of the primary duties of the caretaker government.

“The PTI, the largest party in Pakistan, is currently under the control of the state. Thousands of PTI workers are languishing in jails due to worst revenge,” a PTI spokesperson said.