27-member cabinet takes oath

Published July 1, 2004

ISLAMABAD, June 30: Pakistan Muslim League President Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain was sworn in as the 22nd Prime Minister of Pakistan by President Pervez Musharraf here on Wednesday.

The president also administered oath of the offices to a 27-member cabinet that included 20 federal ministers and seven ministers of state at Aiwan-i-Sadr. The portfolios of all the ministers of former prime minister Zafarullah Khan Jamali's cabinet have remained unchanged.

Two additional cabinet members taken from Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) were Mohammad Ajmal Khan and Dr Ghazi Ghulam Jamal, whose portfolios were not immediately announced.

The oath-taking ceremony was attended by National Assembly Speaker Chaudhry Amir Hussain, former prime minister Jamali, provincial governors, chief ministers, members of parliament, services chiefs, diplomats and federal secretaries.

The previous federal ministers retained in the cabinet are: Rao Sikander Iqbal (defence), Shaukat Aziz (finance), Khurshid Mehmood Kasuri (foreign affairs), Dr Abdul Hafeez Sheikh (privatisation), Sheikh Rashid Ahmed (information), Humayun Akhtar (commerce), Zobaida Jalal (education), Aftab Ahmed Khan Sherpao (water & power and Kana), Syed Faisal Saleh Hayat (interior), Yar Mohammad Rind (food and agriculture), Awais Ahmed Khan Leghari (IT), Liaqat Ali Jatoi (industries), Babar Khan Ghauri (communication), Mohammad Nasir Khan (health), Mohammad Ijaz-ul-Haq (religious affairs), Ghous Baksh Mahar (railways), Chaudhry Noraiz Shakoor (petroleum), Syed Safwanullah (works).

The ministers of state are: Mohammad Raza Hayat Hiraj (parliamentary affairs), Hamid Yar Hiraj (health), Sikandar Hayat Khan Bosan (food and agriculture), Mohammad Tahir Iqbal (environment), Raees Munir Ahmed (culture and youth affairs), Khalid Ahmed Khan Lund (water and power) and Habibullah Waraich (defence production).

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