Abdul Wali Kakar named Balochistan governor

The federal government on Friday appointed Malak Abdul Wali Kakar as the governor of Balochistan.

President Dr Arif Alvi signed the notification of Kakar’s induction as the governor of Balochistan on the advice of the prime minister.

Kakar is the Central Vice President of Balochistan National Party-Mengal (BNP-M) and the son of seasoned nationalist leader Malik Abdul Ali Kakar.

He belongs to Kakar tribe from the Kuchlak area of Quetta. Kakar thanked the BNP Chief Sardar Akhtar Mengal for nominating him for the position of governor of Balochistan.

“I would try to come up with the expectations of the people of Balochistan,” he said.

Kakar added that Sardar Attaullah Khan Mengal was one of his political mentors along with his father Malik Abdul Ali Kakar.

Till his last breath, my father Malik Abdul Ali Kakar was a political ally of Sardar Attaullah Khan Mengal, he said.

It may be noted here that the slot of governor in Balochistan was lying vacant since 13th of April 2022.

Syed Zahoor Ahmed Agha, the then governor of Balochistan who belonged to the former ruling party Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) had resigned from his position.

Currently, Mir Jan Muhammad Jamali, the Speaker of the Balochistan Assembly, acted as an acting governor.

“My top priority is highlighting Balochistan’s case in Islamabad in an effective way,” Kakar said while talking to The Express Tribune.

He noted that Balochistan is facing so many issues and the government would take all possible steps to address them. “I will listen to the grievances of the masses and provide a timely solution,” Kakar added.

“I will play a role to reduce the number of problems currently faced by the people if not completely eliminating it,” he assured.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 4^th, 2023.