ISLAMABAD/KARACHI: Caretaker Prime Minister Anwarul Haq Kakar said that the interim setup was in power only for a limited period, whose mandate was to assist and monitor the electoral process in the country.
The remarks came at a cabinet meeting in Islamabad on Tuesday ahead of the prime minister’s first visit to Karachi.
Prime Minister Kakar said that keeping in mind the prime mandate, the caretaker government will monitor its day-to-day activities to the best of its ability.
He told his cabinet members that he was in government for a limited period as a constitutional succession.
The Prime Minister said that we are not here to design a government model or structure. He said that as a continuation of the previous government, the supervisory setup should have continued with the general policy as long as there was no violation of regulations or business.
Kakar said that the National Assembly (NA) has retired and they are waiting for fresh elections, adding that the Senate is still there but it alone cannot pass any legislation in the absence of the National Assembly.
The Caretaker Prime Minister directed the Cabinet members to take a briefing from their respective Ministries and make a work plan and based on this work plan the agenda of the next Cabinet meeting will be made.
Kakar, who visited Jaranwala just a day ago, made the protection of minorities a top priority. He briefed the Cabinet on his visit and made it clear that incitement of religious hatred and extremism will not be allowed at any cost. He assured that the people involved in the Jaranwala incident will be severely punished.
In the meeting, it was recommended to hold a national level interfaith harmony conference next week. Scholars of different religions and schools of thought will be invited to the conference.
Later speaking to the media after visiting the Quaid-e-Azam Mazar-e-Quaid for his last rites, the prime minister said that the caretaker government would work for a limited period to ensure transparency. Conduct of election process
Kakar reiterated that the caretaker government would ensure the conduct of the upcoming general elections in a transparent and impartial manner that would be acceptable to all concerned constituencies.
Governor Sindh Kamran Khan Tesori, Caretaker Chief Minister Justice (Rtd) Maqbool Baqir and members of his cabinet were also present on this occasion.
In a meeting with the delegation of Muttahida Qaumi Movement Pakistan (MQM-P), the caretaker prime minister assured them that the government will use all possible resources to solve the problems facing Karachi.
The MQM delegation drew the Prime Minister’s attention to the issues related to delimitation of constituencies in Karachi and shortage of drinking water in the city.
