ISLAMABAD, 26 April 2006 — Pakistan inducted new ministers in a major Cabinet reshuffle yesterday which also saw nearly a dozen changes among the lineup of federal ministers.
Mohammed Ali Durrani, who previously held the portfolio of minister for youth affairs, was made information minister, replacing Sheikh Rashid Ahmed, who was appointed railways minister. None of the other key portfolios such as the interior, finance and foreign affairs, was changed. The new ministers were sworn in by President Gen. Pervez Musharraf.
“One of my top priorities is to ensure freedom of the press and to facilitate journalists, local and foreigners,” Durrani told the Associated Press after his appointment. Among the 11 changes in the lineup of 33 federal ministers, Faisal Saleh Hayat was shifted to the environment ministry, while Tahir Iqbal, a retired major, took Hayat’s slot as minister for Kashmir and the Northern Areas.
Sumaira Malik, a lawmaker for the ruling party, was made women’s affairs minister. An adviser to Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz on women’s affairs, Nilofar Bakhtiar, became minister for tourism.
There were also nine changes in the lineup of ministers of state — positions equivalent to deputy minister — and one new portfolio was created, minister of state for minorities, taken by Mushtaq Victor, a former schoolteacher.
Amanullah Khan Jadoon was appointed minister for petroleum and mineral resources and Nasir Mengal made state minister for petroleum.
Babar Ghouri got the communication portfolio while Safwanullah became the minister for housing. Owais Leghari and Nauroz Shakoor were appointed IT and science and technology ministers respectively.
