‘Dual nationals in cabinet a security risk’
A REUTERS FILE IMAGE
The presence of persons with dual nationality in the federal cabinet is a security risk, declared Sindh government spokesperson Murtaza Wahab on Sunday.
The federal government had made public the assets and nationalities of 15 special assistants to the prime minister on Saturday, bringing to light that seven of them were either dual nationals or held another country's permanent residency. The move came in response to growing criticism and calls for declaring the assets of people close to the PM.
"The founders of Naya Pakistan have imported consultants from abroad and included them in the federal cabinet, even though dual nationals are not allowed to join the cabinet or become members of parliament," stated Wahab.
He argued that PM Imran Khan had disregarded the Constitution and "made foreign nationals a part of his kitchen cabinet," adding that the premier had taken a U-turn on this as he did on every other issue.
Stressing that gravity of the presence of foreign nationals in the cabinet while sensitive decisions of national significance were being made, Wahab pointed out that the PM himself used to say that dual citizens had taken an oath of loyalty to the country granting them citizenship.
"Khan has forgotten everything that he had said and claimed when he was in opposition," he maintained, insisting that the PM had committed a crime by including dual nationals in the federal cabinet. "Why was he unable to find competent people in Pakistan? Why is he relying on foreign nationals?" he asked.
Published in The Express Tribune, July 20th, 2020.