Mashal Azam ousted from cabinet over ‘poor performance

PESHAWAR: Though a formal notification is still awaited, sources in the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) said on Sunday, Adviser to Chief Minister on Zakat, Ushr, Social Welfare and Women Empowerment Mashal Azam was ousted from the provincial cabinet over poor performance and other charges.

Reports have been circulating in the media for the last five days that a reshuffle in the KP cabinet has been carried out under which some ministers, advisers and special assistants have been relieved while new faces will be included in the setup as well.

It was learnt that a summary had been prepared to that effect but the document was yet to be signed by Governor Faisal Karim Kundi as he was in Punjab these days.

The sources told Geo News that Mashal Azam, the only woman in the KP cabinet, had lost the adviser position as apart from her poor performance, she was accused of meddling in the central setup of the PTI. “A senior party leader sent a message to Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur and asked him to de-notify Mashal Azam as adviser. He had sent the message to the chief minister on the orders of the PTI founder,” said a source in the party, privy to the development.

The sources in the PTI said that Mashal Azam was accused of giving more time to the party’s central chapter instead of focusing on the departments assigned to her in KP. They said senior party leaders had complained to Imran Khan against that. It was learnt that Mashal Azam was accused of using the name of Bushra Bibi, the wife of the party founder, which was a source of concern for the PTI leaders. A senior but cornered leader of the PTI, Shaukat Yousafzai, told this correspondent that Mashal Azam did not work efficiently in the KP cabinet .

“She did no good to the party but would always remain in contact with the senior party leaders,” said Shaukat Yousafzai who served in the KP cabinet when the PTI came into power for the first time in KP after the 2013 general elections.

He said he was surprised when Mashal Azam was taken into the KP cabinet after the PTI formed the government in KP for the third consecutive time following a win in the February 8, general elections, this year.

Shaukat Yousafzai said although Mashal Azam was a lawyer by profession, here too she offered no help to our party colleagues. “I don’t know what her contributions are to the party,” he wondered.

He said the chief minister came to know about the capabilities of Mashal Azam when he named her his adviser. “I think there should be a review of the distribution of ministries,” he said Meanwhile, Mashal Azam said she would not respond to the utterances of Shaukat Yousafzai. “She has no standing in PTI and the same was the case when he was the minister in the provincial government.