President Asif Ali Zardari approved the appointment of the governors for Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Punjab and Balochistan on Saturday.
PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari had nominated two senior party leaders a day ago for the posts of the KP and Punjab governors as part of a deal reached with the PML-N before joining the coalition government.
In Balochistan, Jaffar Khan Mandokhail, president of the PML-N’s provincial chapter, was appointed the new governor, according to sources.
A press release issued from the presidency today said President Zardari approved the appointment of PPP Central Information Secretary Faisal Karim Kundi as the governor for KP, Sardar Saleem Haider for Punjab and Mandokhail for Balochistan.
It said that the approval was given under Article 101(1) of the Constitution.
The relevant subsection says that “there shall be a governor for each province, who shall be appointed by the president in his discretion after consultation with the prime minister.”
Bilawal wished the two well and said he hoped they would “represent the federation in a better way”.
Soon after the nominations on Friday, Bilawal had called on Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif at the PM House, and informed him about the decision.
A source in the PM Office had said it was a one-on-one meeting between the two leaders in which the issue of governors of the two provinces came under discussion.
“ I am confident they will preform their duties with the dignity their new office demands. I wish them both the best of luck,“ Bilawal had said in a post on X after the nominations were made public.
Presently, PML-N leader Balighur Rehman was the Punjab governor, while Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl’s Haji Ghulam Ali was serving in the same post in KP.
According to sources, PM Shehbaz had sent the summary of Mandokhail’s appointment to President Zardari after the approval of PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif.
When contacted by Dawn, Mandokhail had also confirmed the development. He will replace Malik Abdul Wali Khan Kakar, the Balochistan National Party-Mengal leader who was appointed to the post in 2022.
After the February 8 elections, the PPP and PML-N — with the support of other parties — agreed on a cooperation mechanism to form a government in the Centre. As part of the deal, the PPP, for its support, would get some key constitutional positions.
The posts of president, Senate chairman and National Assembly deputy speaker have already gone to the party as part of the deal. The PML-N had also agreed to appoint PPP leaders as governors of two out of four provinces.