LAHORE – New names have surfaced for the slot of caretaker Prime Ministerand the cabinet ministers.
The name of Abdul Razak Dawood – a former commerce minister and worldrenowned corporate icon – has appeared among the possible candidates forcaretake prime minister.
Earlier, the names of Chief Justice (r) Tassaduq Hussain Jillani,distinguished economist Dr Hafeez Pasha and former State Bank of Pakistangovernor Ishrat Hussain were tipped as the possible choices for the keyposition.
The names for the federal cabinet have also been doing the rounds and thekey people whose names are being mentioned by different sources includeMaleeha Lodhi, Barrister Taimur Malik, Abbas Khan, Shakil Durrani, TaimurAzmat Osman, Dr Adeeb Rizvi, Khurram Shehzad Chughtai, Ameena Zafar Cheema,Dr Salman Shah, Mushtaq Chhapra and Col (r) Ihsan-ur-Rehman.
The expected candidates have recognition for their positive roles in theirrespective fields.
The final list, the reliable sources said, would only become known once thename of the caretaker prime minister is finalised but it is likely thatmost of the names mentioned above would be part of the caretaker setup.
The previous caretaker governments have also included prominenttechnocrats, retired civil servants, retired judges and generals.
However, the names mentioned above give the impression that thestakeholders are serious about having a neutral and very competent team inplace this time to ensure a smooth and timely transition of government.