CM inducts Shafi Ullah Jan as special assistant, Meena Khan Afridi takes charge of local government portfolio
The Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa government has formally allotted portfolios to the newly formed 13-member cabinet, which was sworn in a day earlier.
According to an official notification issued by the Department of Administration following the approval of the chief minister, ten members of the provincial cabinet have been assigned new departmental duties.
Shafi Ullah Jan of Kohat has been appointed special assistant on information, broadcasting and public relations. Peshawar’s Meena Khan Afridi has been posted to the Local Government Department, a portfolio previously held by former CM Ali Amin Gandapur along with Higher Education.
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Arshad Ayub Khan will now head the Department of Primary and Secondary Education. He previously served as Minister of Local Government. Fazal Shakoor Khan, who was earlier in charge of the Labor Ministry, has been posted as Public Health Engineering.
Dr. Amjad Ali will continue to oversee the Housing portfolio, a position he held in previous provincial administrations. Aftab Alam Afridi has been reinstated as Minister of Law, Parliamentary Affairs and Human Rights, while Syed Fakhar Jehan will now head the Excise and Taxation Department, having previously been Minister of Sports and Youth Affairs.
Riaz Khan has been assigned the Irrigation portfolio. He previously served as Minister of Communications and Works. Khaleeq-ur-Rehman, who earlier headed the Excise Department, will now oversee the Health Department.
Aqib Ullah Khan, brother of former National Assembly Speaker Asad Qaiser, has been appointed Minister of Relief, Rehabilitation and Settlement after previously managing Irrigation. Meanwhile, Faisal Khan Tarakai, brother of former minister Shahram Tarakai, has taken charge of the Labor Department. He previously served as Provincial Minister of Primary and Secondary Education during the Gandapur tenure.
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Among the advisors, Muzzammil Aslam has been re-appointed Finance Advisor, while Taj Muhammad Tarand has been assigned Sports and Youth Affairs, a portfolio he previously headed as Special Assistant on Prisons during the Mahmood Khan government.
Following the resignation of former chief minister Ali Amin Gandapur last month, the PTI had nominated Sohail Afridi as the new leader of the provincial government. Afridi was sworn in on October 15, but despite repeated speculation about potential cabinet members, no formal announcement was made at that time.
During his maiden speech in the provincial assembly, CM Afridi reaffirmed his loyalty to the PTI founder and declared, “I voted in the name of Imran Khan and will govern according to his vision.” He further stated, “Cabinet appointments will not be finalized until he personally consults Khan.”
The absence of a cabinet had paralyzed routine government in the province. Most official affairs were handled by the bureaucracy under the supervision of the chief secretary, effectively sidelining elected representatives.
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The delay in the reconstitution of a new cabinet generated criticism from the opposition. After deliberations, CM Afridi on Friday formed a 13-member cabinet, comprising 10 provincial ministers, two advisors and one special assistant, slightly smaller than the one formed by former CM Gandapur.
Afridi revealed that the cabinet would initially include 10 ministers, following instructions received from Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf founder Imran Khan.
During Gandapur’s rule, KP had a 32-member cabinet comprising 16 ministers, four advisors and 12 special assistants.
