ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari took oath as the 14th President of Pakistan on Sunday, becoming the first elected president to reach the presidency for the second time. Chief Justice of Pakistan Qazi Faez Isa administered the oath to Asif Ali Zardari at a ceremony held at the President House.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Speaker National Assembly Sardar Ayaz Sadiq, former Prime Minister and PML-N Supremo Nawaz Sharif, the outgoing President Dr Arif Alvi, parliamentarians, political leaders, Services Chiefs, and Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee (CJCSC) General Sahir Shamshad Mirza, members of the diplomatic community and other high officials attended the ceremony. Moreover, Chief Ministers, Governors, attended the ceremony while Khyber Pakhtunkhwa chief minister skipped the ceremony.

Asif Ali Zardari, as a joint candidate of the PML-N and the PPP, defeated Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC) candidate Mahmood Khan Achakzai in the presidential elections held on Saturday. Zardari secured majority votes of the Electoral College, comprising the parliament and provincial assemblies.

Asif Ali Zardari elected as 14th president of Pakistan

He secured 411 votes while the SIC backed candidate Mehmood Khan Achakzai managed to get 181 votes. In a joint sitting of the National Assembly and Senate, the coalition government’s nominee received 255 votes while the SIC-backed candidate managed just 119 votes.

Asif Ali Zardari is the first elected president of Pakistan, who succeeded in reaching the president office for a second time. Earlier, he served as the 11th President of Pakistan from 2008 to 2013 and was the first politician to complete a full term in office. Under 18th Amendment, he gave away the presidential powers to strengthen parliamentary democracy and bolstered provincial autonomy.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2024