Centre’s cabinet formula to replicate in Punjab
Bureau Report

LAHORE—PML-N Central Information Secretary and Federal Education Minister Ahsan Iqbal has said that federal government’s formula would be adopted in the process of Punjab cabinet formation.Ahsan said, “Every coalition party will be given portfolios in Punjab government with the ratio followed in the formation of federal cabinet.”
He was talking to journalists after attending the party’s federal ministers and provincial presidents’ meeting chaired by its Chief Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif here on Friday evening.
To a question, he said, PML-N would soon hold its meeting to finalize names for chief minister, speaker and deputy speaker in the provincial assembly.
The minister ruled out any rift or differences in the coalition parties and said “there is complete harmony and trust among the allied parties.” To a query, he said that any party, which totally support the Murree Declaration and Charter of Democracy, could be coalition partner at federal level.
“As for as the MQM is concerned, there is no any suggestion to include it in the coalition or to give it ministries at federal level, because it does not support the restoration of judiciary,” he maintained. Ahsan quoted Nawaz Sharif as saying that PPP was in dialogue with MQM for coalition in Sindh government only, adding, “There is PPP government in Sindh and its PPP’s prerogative whether or not to make MQM as its coalition partner.”
In the meeting, he said, all PML-N ministers had expressed their commitment that coalition parties would take as a test the Murree Declaration in which they promised with the masses to restore judiciary in its November 2, 2007 status within 30 days.
He said PML-N Chief also stressed upon the party ministers to focus on good governance and launch new programmes to comply with the coalition’s minimum agenda of 100 days. Responding to another query, Ahsan Iqbal said that coalition parties had consensus that parliament would decide about anti-terrorism policies and all other issues in accordance with people’s expectations.
The US representatives, who recently visited Pakistan, had also been informed that there was now a strong democratic parliament in the country and it would take decisions on anti-terror strategies and all other vital national issues, he added.
“The success of coalition parties is infect the success of democracy, rule of law and sovereign parliament,” he said and added that allied parties would strive to end power, gas and food crises in the country as well as ensure masses’ prosperity.
Former Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has refuted India’s claim that terrorist camps continue to operate from his country and advocated a visa-free regime as part of confidence-building measures to resolve the lingering Kashmir issue.