ISLAMABAD: Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Syed Khursheed Shah has said that the government and the opposition will finalise the name of the caretaker prime minister within a month.

Talking to Dawn on Tuesday, the opposition leader said that he had already talked to the leaders of other opposition parties, including Shah Mehmood Qureshi of Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf, Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi of Pakistan Muslim League-Q and Jamaat-i-Islami emir Sirajul Haq and asked them to propose names for the post of caretaker prime minister.

Mr Shah said he was busy with a private matter in his hometown Sukkur and would soon come to Islamabad and make a second round of talks with Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi.

Opposition leader says he has asked other parties to propose names for the post

Earlier, the opposition leader and the prime minister met on Feb 18 at the chamber of National Assembly Speaker Ayaz Sadiq and discussed the issue.

Meanwhile, a source told Dawn that during the first meeting between Mr Shah and Mr Abbasi on the issue, some names, including that of incumbent Senate Chairman Raza Rabbani, were considered.

The opposition leader was of the view that the person who could take his own decisions and hold fair and transparent elections should be considered for the office of the caretaker prime minister.

Talking to Dawn, Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) leader Farhatullah Babar said that he had also heard about Mr Rabbani’s name being considered. But, he added, the party had not yet finalised any name for the position.

He said PPP co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari had begun the process of consultation within the party to reach a consensus on who would be the party candidate for the office of caretaker prime minister. “Mr Zardari has sought opinion from all leaders and workers of the party,” he added.

According to the strategy finalised by Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), PM Abbasi will expedite the process of consulting leaders of parliamentary parties in March.

The present government will conclude its five-year term on May 31, after which the caretaker setup will be put in place to hold elections, expected in July or the first week of August.

Under the constitution, the caretaker prime minister is appointed by the prime minister in consultation with the leader of the opposition in the National Assembly.

Both the prime minister and the opposition leader have to present names of three nominees each from which the consensus candidate is made the caretaker prime minister.

The role of caretaker set-up always remains important in holding polls in a transparent manner. Besides, the caretaker prime minister will have to take care other important issues like implementation of measures for China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), terrorism, Balochistan Peace Programme, National Action Plan, foreign affairs and security situation.

Published in Dawn, February 28th, 2018