Federal Cabinet meeting scheduled for today postponed

ISLAMABAD: The federal cabinet meeting, convened today under the chairmanship of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to deliberate on the 27th Constitutional Amendment, has been postponed.

The session was expected to approve the draft of the 27th Amendment; however, cabinet members have been formally notified about the postponement.

The meeting was scheduled to take place at Committee Room No. 2 of the Parliament House, where key government matters and proposed constitutional amendments were to be discussed.

According to sources, the reasons behind the postponement have not yet been disclosed. A new date for the meeting is likely to be announced in the coming days.

On the other hand,  Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has taken coalition partners into confidence regarding the proposed 27th Constitutional Amendment.

During a meeting with an MQM delegation, he assured the party that its local government draft would be incorporated into the amendment, after which MQM also extended its support.

MQM representatives also pledged to assist the government in securing backing from other political parties.

According to sources, MQM placed several demands before the prime minister, including granting financial, administrative, and political powers to local governments formed after the elections, setting a four-year tenure for local bodies, and holding new local government elections under a caretaker setup.

Separately, delegations from the Istehkam-e-Pakistan Party, PML-Q, and Balochistan Awami Party also met with the prime minister to discuss the amendment and related political matters.

Meanwhile, the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) has rejected all key points of the proposed 27th Constitutional Amendment except the change related to Article 243.

Speaking to the media after the meeting of the party’s Central Executive Committee (CEC), Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari said the PPP firmly opposes the clause related to provincial share, adding that the party will not support such a proposal under any circumstances.

He further stated that the remaining points of the proposed amendment — including changes to the NFC formula — have also been completely rejected by the party.