KARACHI: Imran Ismail, who has been nominated as governor of Sindh by the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI), has said he will set a “new trend as an active governor” because his party chief Imran Khan wants to see the problems being faced by the people of the province solved.

Mr Ismail, who returned from Islamabad to Karachi on Sunday after having been named the new governor by the PTI chairman, told reporters at the airport that instead of restricting himself to the Governor House, he would play an active role in resolving the issues confronting the masses.

Accompanied by Firdaus Shamim Naqvi, Haleem Adil Shaikh, Khurram Sherzaman, Raja Azhar and other leaders and activists of the PTI, he said Karachi had lagged far behind in development during the last 10 years, adding that now every project of the city would be audited by a third party because without elimination of corruption the province could not develop.

Says he will set a ‘new trend as an active governor’

Mr Ismail, an MPA-elect from Karachi, said the Governor House was a historic building which should be opened for public. “Our efforts would be to transform the Governor House into a prestigious educational institute and curtail its expenditures.”

In reply to a question, he said he would not only take the Karachi mayor but also all other stakeholders along to restore stature of the city. Asked who would be the leader of the opposition in the Sindh Assembly, the PTI leader said the name for the post had been finalised, but its announcement would be made along with nominations for other offices, including the speaker and deputy speaker, in consultation with leaders of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan, Grand Democratic Alliance and other parties in the opposition.

Published in Dawn, August 13th, 2018