KABUL (SW) – The Wolesi Jirga (lower house) on Saturday granted vote of confidence to ten nominated ministers picked by President Mohammad Ashraf Ghani for the cabinet.
Out of all 248 members of the lower house, 246 were present during voting. Each candidate for the ministry had to get at least 124 votes to secure his position as minister.
Following the voting, Mohammad Haneef Atmar became the Foreign Minister with 197 votes in his favor. Abdul Hadi Arghandiwal with 205 votes in favor as Minister of Finance, Assadullah Khalid with 206 votes became Defense Minister, Massoud Andarabi as Minister of Interior with 214 votes in favor, Masoumah Khavari as Minister of Informational Technology and Communication with 154 votes in favor and Fazal Ahmad Manavi was elected Minister of Justice with 220 votes in favor.
Abbas Basir became the Minister of Higher Education with 197 votes. Bashir Ahmad Tayenj became Minister of Labor and Social Affairs with 190 votes in favor.
Mohammad Qasim Halimi was elected as Minister of Industry and Trade with 148 votes in favor, and Ahmad Ghoriani was elected as Minister of Industry and Trade with 213 votes in favor.
At the end of the voting process, the WJ speaker Mir Rahman Rahmani said that the voting process for the nominees was transparent.
Fourteen more nominee ministers and two nominees to head independent directorates are scheduled to present their work plans to the house in the coming days.
ENDS
