8 Subh, Kabul: Ten nominees received the vote of confidence from the House of Representatives.
Voting to confirm the nominations of Fazl Ahmad Manawi, Hanif Atmar, Abdul Hadi Arghandiwal, Mohammad Masood Andarabi, Asadullah Khalid, Masooma Khawari, Abbas Basir, Mohammad Qasim Halimi, Bashir Ahmad Tayang, and Nisar Ahmad Ghoriani was held on Saturday, November 21.
They were nominated for the Ministries of Justice, Foreign Affairs, Finance, Interior, National Defense, Telecommunications and Information Technology, Higher Education, Guidance, Hajj and Endowments, Labor and Social Affairs, and Industry and Commerce, respectively.
The work plans of these cabinet members were presented to parliament on several occasions last week. 246 members of the House of Representatives voted for the nominees, with candidates requiring 124 votes in favor in order to be confirmed.
Fazl Ahmad Manawi received 220 votes in favor and nine votes against out of 246 votes cast in the House of Representatives. Ten votes were invalid and seven were blank. Hanif Atmar received 197 votes in favor and 24 votes against, making him Minister of Foreign Affairs. Nine votes were blank and 16 others declared invalid. Abdul Hadi Arghandiwal received 205 votes in favor, 32 votes against, and nine blank votes.
Similarly, Andarabi was approved as Minister of the Interior with 214 votes in favor, 25 against, and seven blank votes. Asadullah Khalid became Minister of National Defense with 206 votes in favor, 17 against, 15 invalid votes, and eight blank votes. Masooma Khawari was approved as Minister of Communications and Information Technology with 154 votes in favor, 67 votes against and 25 votes declared blank.
Abbas Basir received 197 votes in favor and 22 votes against, with 13 invalid and 14 blank votes. Qasim Halimi became Minister of Guidance, Hajj and Endowments with 148 votes in favor, 41 against, 23 invalid votes and 24 blank votes. Bashir Ahmad Tahyang was approved as Minister of Labor and Social Affairs with 190 votes in favor, 40 votes against and 16 blank votes. Nisar Ahmad Ghoriani became Minister of Industry and Trade with 213 votes in favor, 23 against and 10 blank votes.
Mir Rahman Rahmani, Speaker of the House of Representatives, said that voting for cabinet members was held on Saturday in a calm, transparent manner, regardless of national tastes, and in the spirit of unity.
