The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) government and the opposition have agreed to appoint former Pakistan bureaucrat Mohammad Azam Khan as KP’s caretaker chief minister, Pakistan’s Dawn newspaper reported.
A letter addressed to KP Governor Haji Ghulam Ali and signed by the outgoing Chief Minister Mahmood Khan and Leader of the Opposition Akram Khan Durrani, stated on Friday that the two had agreed to nominate Khan after consultation. Talking to the media in Peshawar after the conclusion of a meeting between the two sides, Durrani said two names each were proposed by him and the Pakistan Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), Dawn newspaper reported.
According to the outgoing Chief Minister, both parties agreed on and finalised Khan for the role from the five nominees under consideration.
Durrani said PTI leader Parvez Khattak played an important role in the meeting, according to Dawn newspaper.
“There is a serious problem of insecurity and inflation in the province. We will not push the nation towards further despair,” he said.
The KP assembly was dissolved on Wednesday after the governor signed and approved the chief minister’s summary for the dissolution of the provincial legislature.
Former KP Chief Minister Mahmood Khan on Tuesday sent a summary for the dissolution of the provincial assembly to Governor Haji Ghulam Ali, reported Geo News.
The development comes days after Chief Minister Parvez Elahi dissolved Punjab Assembly.
Mahmood said that the decision to dissolve the assembly was taken in the broader interest of Pakistan.
“I, Mahmood Khan Chief Minister of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa in pursuance of Article 112(1) of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan do hereby forward my advice for dissolution of the Provincial Assembly of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa on January 17, 2023,” read the summary.
In a video statement, he said: “I promised Imran Khan that I would sign the summary for the dissolution of the provincial assembly by 10 pm and I did.”
He added, “We have done whatever we could for our people. Now, the assembly will be dissolved and elections will be held within 90 days.”
The PTI would return to power with a two-thirds majority not only in the province but across the country, he added, reported Geo News.
The PTI chairman had announced the dissolution of the assemblies of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab, in November last year. However, the plans were delayed due to consultations with allies and countermeasures adopted by the ruling allies in the centre.