Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz’s (PML-N) Captain (retd) Abdul Khaliq Achakzai on Thursday elected unopposed as Speaker of Balochistan Assembly. As per details, the session also elected Ghazala Gola as the deputy speaker of Balochistan Assembly unopposed. According the schedule, the newly-elected speaker Abdul Khaliq Achakzai and deputy speaker Ghazala Gola will take oath of their respective offices today (Thursday). Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) named  as their candidate for the seat of Balochistan Assembly speaker. Former prime minister Nawaz Sharif and the party President Shehbaz Sharif earlier named Captain (r) Abdul Khaliq Achakzai as PML-N candidate for the Speaker of Balochistan Assembly after consultations with the party leadership.

Earlier, the newly elected MPAs of the Balochistan Assembly took their oaths of membership in session chaired by the presiding officer Engineer Zamrud Khan. The 51 members, elected on general seats, who took oath today include members of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) lawmakers who have emerged as the largest parties in the 65-member House. The assembly includes 11 reserved seats for women and three for minorities while the PPP has 11 seats and PML-N has 10 seats. Meanwhile, the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) and Balochistan Awami Party (BAP) have 10 and five seats, respectively.

Credit: Independent News Pakistan (INP)