President-elect Asif Ali Zardari to be sworn in today

ISLAMABAD: President-elect Asif Ali Zardari is set to be sworn in today (Sunday), and he will administer the oath to members of federal cabinet early next week.

Meanwhile, a joint sitting of parliament is scheduled to be convened in the second half of next month. President Asif Ali Zardari will address this session, as mandatory for the commencement of parliamentary year of the National Assembly. This joint sitting of the two houses of parliament will be followed by the first regular session of the newly-elected National Assembly.

Well-placed parliamentary sources informed The News that the first batch of federal cabinet members, including ministers, state ministers and advisers to the prime minister, will take the oath of office on Wednesday (March 13).

The sources said that Asif Ali Zardari will visit the four provincial capitals during this month and hold consultations with political leadership to address the sharp polarization in the political divide. It is understood that his first political mission will be to engage with Maulana Fazalur Rehman, who is expressing dissatisfaction with the outcome of last month’s polls and discussing the possibility of launching a nationwide movement.

Developing a working relationship with the incumbent government of KP will pose a significant challenge.

In a related development, elections for six Senate seats will be held on Thursday (March 14), which were vacated earlier this month due to the resignation of former prime minister Syed Yousaf Raza Gilani (PPP), Maulana Abdul Ghafoor Haideri (JUI-F), Nisar Ahmed Khoro (PPP), Jam Mehtab Hussain Dahar (PPP), Prince Ahmed Umer Ahmedzai (Independent) and Sarfraz Ahmed Bugti (BAP now PPP).

Sadiq Sanjrani has ceased to be the Senate chairman as he has taken oath as a member of the Balochistan Assembly, while Deputy Chairman Mirza Muhammad Afridi will leave office tomorrow (Tuesday) upon completion of his term as a member of the house. All six newly elected members of the Senate will have to wait until next month to take the oath, as the new chairman of the Senate will be elected or President Zardari will administer their oath.

The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has scheduled April 3 for the election of 54 Senate members, seats vacated due to the retirement of fifty percent of members after completing their six-year terms. President Asif Zardari will likely administer the oath of membership to all the 60 newly elected senators so that they can participate in the process of electing the new chairman and deputy chairman, the sources added.