Punjab Chief Minister Usman Buzdar appointed Fayazul Hasan Chohan, who holds the portfolio of Punjab prisons minister, as the provincial government's spokesperson following the resignation of Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan last week, according to a notification issued by the government on Friday.

Awan, who was the special assistant to the Punjab chief minister on information, had replaced Chohan in November last year when the latter was removed as information minister in Buzdar's cabinet.

However, Chohan still remained part of the cabinet as he remained the colonies minister and a few days later was given the additional charge of prisons minister.

A week after Awan's resignation, Chohan has now been appointed as the "official spokesperson" for the Punjab government, according to the notification, a copy of which is available with Dawn.com.

"Chief Minister has been pleased to appoint Mr. Fayaz-ul-Hassan Chohan, Minister for Prisons, Punjab, as Official Spokesperson for the Government of Punjab till further orders," reads the notification, implying that Chohan will continue to hold his ministry along with this new charge for now.

"Further necessary action may be taken accordingly," the notification, signed by the principal secretary to the chief minister, adds.

Speaking on the matter, Chohan expressed gratitude to the leadership for giving him the "additional responsibility of the provincial government spokesperson".

He said as the Punjab government spokesperson, "my basic agenda will be to present to the public the [provincial] government's achievements." He also vowed to "expose the conspiracies against the Buzdar government".

Awan's resignation

In her resignation letter, a copy of which is available with Dawn.com, Awan had thanked Prime Minister Imran Khan for "posing confidence in me to undertake the herculean task" of highlighting the "outstanding and remarkable performance of the Government of Punjab".

She had also expressed her gratitude to Buzdar for his "scrupulous support ... from time to time which kept me motivated and steadfast in accomplishing the professional goals set for me by my party".

A notification issued by the Chief Minister's Office at the time stated that Awan's resignation had been accepted by Buzdar.

In this connection, a Dawn report had said that the immediate acceptance of Awan’s resignation had finally closed the chapter of her rift with the chief minister, who was upset with his aide for going beyond her limits and making announcements that Buzdar himself wished to make.