Sanaullah Zehri takes oath as Balochistan CM, Raheela Durrani as Speaker
Raheela is the first ever woman speaker of Balochistan Assembly.
QUETTA (Dunya News) – Leader of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Raheela Hameed Khan Durrani on Thursday has taken oath as Balochistan Assembly Speaker while Sanaullah Zehri has been unanimously elected as Chief Minister.
Durrani was elected today as Speaker of Balochistan Assembly without any contest.
Raheela Durrani is the 14th speaker of Balochistan Assembly and the first ever woman speaker of the house. She has been elected unopposed in the assembly as no one came in contest against her.
Raheela Hameed Khan Durrani was born in Quetta. She has done her M.A, L.L.B from University of Balochistan and also completed Certificate in Leadership, Environment and Sustainable Development.
Durrani while taking oath as Balochistan Assembly Speaker
She is a practicing Lawyer and social worker by profession. She is currently an active member of Public Safety Commission Balochistan, National Commission on Status of Women (NCSW), and Balochistan Olympic Association.
Speaker Balochistan Assembly post was vacant for the last eight months.
Presiding officer Lyaqat Agha administered the oath following which Speaker Durrani chaired a session. While addressing the participants, she said that Speaker’s post is a big challenge for her. She prioritized shouldering her responsibilities without any bias and above political interests.
Durrani further said that she dedicates her victory to the mothers of the province.
Former Chief Minister Dr Baloch said that he always has abode by democratic values and would continue assistance to counter different challenges. He recommended the people in power in the assembly to take advantage of committees to better run the assembly affairs.
On the other hand, Opposition Leader Maulana Wasay belonging to Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) hoped that the new setup would not allow any kind of disparity that the opposition was subjected to in the past.
Speaker’s bias damages the democracy, he added.
Governor Muhammad Khan Achakzai had called a session of the assembly today at 10am. Nomination papers for the Speaker s post were filed between 9am to 10am while till 11am, papers were scrutinized.
Today’s session also saw election of the Chief Minister (CM) as nomination papers were summoned from 1pm to 2pm. After scrutiny of the papers, election of the fresh CM was announced.
Former CM Dr Abdul Malik Baloch had resigned following the Murree agreement. The pact bounds Balochistan CM to step down after two and a half years.
On the other hand, Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid-e-Azam’s (PML-Q) deputy speaker Mir Abdul Quddus Bizenjo has also resigned owing to intra-party tensions.
However, no name has surfaced so far for the deputy speaker post of Balochistan Assembly.
