PESHAWAR: Haji Ghulam Ali, a senior leader of Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F), on Wednesday took oath as the governor of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Peshawar High Court Chief Justice Qaiser Rashid Khan administered the oath to the JUI-F leader at the Governor House at a ceremony attended by party chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman, Communication Minister Maulana Asad Mehmood, KP Assembly Opposition Leader Akram Khan Durrani, Mayor Haji Zubair Ali, Awami National Party leader Haji Ghulam Ahmed Bilour and Senator Maulana Attaur Rehman among others.

The post of the governor remained vacant for months after Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) leader Shah Farman stepped down following the ouster of PTI government at the Centre through a vote of no-confidence in April this year.

Mr Ali’s oath-taking ceremony came after the presidency approved his appointment as the governor following the recommendation of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.

Haji Ghulam Ali vows to strive for bridging differences between province, Centre

“President Arif Alvi has appointed Haji Ghulam Ali as KP governor under Article 101 of the Constitution on the advice of Prime Minister,” the presidency stated in a Twitter posting.

Soon after the announcement of his appointment as the KP governor, the JUI-F leader told reporters that he will work to bridge the differences between KP and the federal government.

He vowed to work to improve the education system and infrastructure in the merged districts and also create jobs for people in the tribal districts. He added that he will reason with the chief minister to work for the province’s rights and its due share from the federal resources. However, he admitted that the differences between KP and the Centre were “huge”.

It may be noted that Mr Ali is related to JUI-F chief and one of his sons is Maulana Fazl’s son-in-law. His son Haji Zubair Ali is currently the mayor of Peshawar.

Mr Ali started his political career as a local government councillor and later served as the Peshawar mayor as part of the local government system introduced by former military dictator Pervez Musharraf. Besides, he served as a senator from March 2009 to March 2015.

The JUI-F leader was arrested by the National Accountability Bureau in the early 2000s on charges of corruption; however, he was later acquitted by an accountability court.

Published in Dawn, November 24th, 2022