Caretakers receive army’s backing for prompt polls

Interim cabinet briefed on state of economy, internal security

ISLAMABAD: The first meeting of the caretaker federal cabinet discussed on Wednesday the timely conduct of free and fair elections on July 25 as top military commanders assured the civilian leadership of full support.

The meeting was presided over by Prime Minister Nasirul Mulk.

Concurrently, Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa called on the caretaker PM and assured him of complete support regarding the general election, officials said.

Sources quoted the army chief as having told the interim PM that the caretaker government could order the deployment of troops for election duties to ensure transparent and timely conduct of the polls.

Separately, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee (JCSC) General Zubair Mahmood Hayat also called on Nasirul Mulk.

A statement issued by the Prime Minister’s Office after the cabinet meeting said that the army chief felicitated the caretaker PM on assuming charge and matters pertaining to Pakistan Army had come under discussion.

Later, the conduct of polls was discussed at the cabinet meeting.

“The secretary interior (Arshad Mirza) briefed the cabinet on various measures being taken by the interior ministry to assist the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) and provincial governments for holding free, fair and peaceful elections,” the statement said.

An official said that security and logistical issues posed major challenges for holding the general election.



“This requires the deployment of a significant number of military and paramilitary troops, law enforcement personnel in addition to assigning field duties to officials of other government departments. The free and fair polls cannot be held unless all state institutions come together and contribute their due share,” the official said.

Meanwhile, secretary interior also briefed the cabinet about the ministry’s functions and policy initiatives for ensuring internal security, the statement said.

Caretaker Finance Minister Dr Shamshad Akhter gave an overview of the economy and briefed the cabinet about various economic indicators, the statement said.

On Tuesday, the six-member caretaker cabinet was sworn in, completing the formation of the interim set-up at the federal level.

Dr Shamshad Akhtar, Abdullah Hussain Haroon, Barrister Syed Ali Zafar, Roshan Khursheed Bharucha, Azam Khan and Professor Muhammad Yusuf Shaikh were inducted in the interim cabinet.