Ishrat served as Sindh governor for record 5,161 days

LAHORE: Sindh’s 30th and longest-serving governor, Ishratul Ebad, was finally sent packing on Wednesday, having served on this position for a record 13 years, 10 months and 13 days or 5,161 days.

The calculation of his tenure’s length has taken into account the seven months of the year that have 31 days and the four leap years (2004, 2008, 2012 and 2016) that have fallen since December 27, 2002, or the day Ishratul Ebad was appointed as Sindh governor by the then president Gen Pervez Musharraf.

Having worked under four Pakistani presidents (Mamnoon Hussain, Gen Musharraf, Mian Muhammad Soomro (Acting) and Asif Ali Zardari, the 53-year old Ishrat is till date the youngest-ever governor of Sindh.

His appointment date of December 27 incidentally coincides with the assassination date of the late PM Benazir Bhutto. Since July 16, 2008, Ishrat had held the distinction of becoming Sindh’s longest-serving governor, having served during the tenures of eight premiers (Mir Zafarullah Khan Jamali, Ch Shujaat Hussain, Shaukat Aziz, Mian Muhammad Soomro (Acting PM), Yousaf Raza Gilani, Raja Pervaiz Ashraf, Mir Hazar Khan Khoso (Acting PM) and Nawaz Sharif). Before Ishrat, Lt Gen SM Abbasi had the honour of being Sindh’s longest-serving governor, having remained in this office from September 18, 1978 to April 6, 1984.

By the way, Ishrat had relinquished charge once on June 27, 2011, but his resignation was not accepted by the then president of the country. Consequently, after a small gap, he resumed his official duties from July 19, 2011. Before assuming charge as Sindh governor, he had served the MQM as head of its Medical Aid Committee and as the provincial minister of Housing and Town Planning.