According to media reports, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) senior leader and former Speaker of the National Assembly Sardar Ayaz Sadiq has resigned from the office of Federal Minister for Economic Affairs. In his resignation, Sardar Ayaz Sadiq has reportedly cited personal reasons behind his decision to quit.

There appear to be two reasons behind former National Assembly speaker’s decision to quit the post of federal minister. First, the portfolio of Economic Affairs does not put him in a situation in which he receives the attention he as a senior PML-N leader actually deserves because more important ministries — finance and planning — are headed by other PML-N leaders.

The ministry that Mr Sadiq has quit is a government ‘think tank’ responsible for policy analysis on a variety of issues. Second, his decision indicates his frustration with rising inflation and price hike which are not certainly adding to the incumbent government’s popularity. In other words, Mr Sadiq didn’t want to hurt his prospects ahead of the next general elections; he has acted rather prudently to safeguard his political interests.

Mushtaq Awan (Rawalpindi)

Copyright Business Recorder, 2022