President advised to get rid of ‘NRO-hit’ ministers

[LahoreEstate]

* Senior PPP leader says Zardari considering the advice

By Zulfiqar Ghuman

ISLAMABAD: Senior leaders of the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) have advised President Asif Ali Zardari to replace ministers who benefited from the National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO).

“This is a unanimous opinion of several party leaders whom Zardari consulted after giving a go-ahead to Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani to reshuffle the cabinet in the recent meeting of the party’s Central Executive Committee,” sources told Daily Times.

A senior party leader, asking not to be named, said he had told Zardari that reshuffle in the cabinet was vital for the party’s credibility.

“I told Zardari that he should not only reshuffle the cabinet but also replace the ministers who benefited from the NRO. I also asked him to replace the ‘incompetent’ ministers with competent ones,” he said. The federal ministers who benefited from the NRO included Defence Minister Chaudhry Ahmed Mukhtar and Interior Minister Rehman Malik.

“As far as the unproven cases against Zardari are concerned he should take the nation into confidence that he will face these cases once his tenure completes,” he said. He said he had told Zardari that the party was full of competent office-bearers. “This will not only improve governance, but also improve the party’s image in the eyes of the people,” he said.

He also said he had contacted several other party leaders in this regard. “Several party leaders, close to the president, told me that Zardari is considering the advice,” he said.

http://dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?pag...2009_pg7_6