Profile: Ghazala Gola — Balochistan Assembly’s new deputy speaker

KARACHI: Ghazala Gola Begum has become the deputy speaker of the Balochistan Assembly. The 71-year-old politician belongs to the PPP and is the president of the PPP’s women’s wing in Balochistan.

Ghazala is from Quetta and belongs to the Gola tribe in the province; she holds a bachelor’s degree in arts.

In 2008, Ghazala Begum was elected to the Balochistan Assembly on the PPP’s reserved seats for women. She served as the minister for social welfare and women’s development in the PPP-led coalition government.

Ghazala Begum has remained an active political member of the PPP, arranging the party’s jalsas in Balochistan and sharing the stage with the PPP’s bigwigs. Although she did not contest the 2024 elections for an NA seat, she actively helped the PPP candidates in their election campaigns. Just like in 2008, she made it to the Balochistan Assembly on a reserved seat in 2024. She has now been elected as the deputy speaker of the provincial assembly.