ISLAMABAD: The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has released the statement of assets and liabilities of the caretaker prime minister and his cabinet members, showing that caretaker Prime Minister Anwaarul Haq Kakar was not a rich man, even in his hometown in Balochistan.

The former member of the upper house has inherited 20 acres of land in the Kila Saifullah area, and only has 100 shares in a mining company valued at Rs50,000.

His spouse has 10 tola gold and jewellery, his household items are worth Rs400,000 and Mr Kakar does not own any vehicle or business outside the country, as per his statement submitted to the ECP. However, the caretaker PM has Rs47.72 million cash in hand or in banks.

The other key cabinet member from Balochistan, coming from a strong tribal family, is Interior Minister Sarfraz Ahmed Bugti. He owns 90 camels, 8,870 sheep, 4,060 goats, 400 cows, 80 bulls and 86 buffaloes — all inherited — and their worth was around Rs69.7m. His cash holding was around Rs7.42m, with Rs6.80m worth of household items.

In his statement to the ECP, Mr Bugti stated that he owned a 2010 model vehicle valued at Rs10.20 m and shares in a CNG station in the Sui area of Balochistan. Neither he nor his wife has any gold or jewellery, he informed the ECP.

Mr Bugti has a share in a two-kanal house in Multan and owns one apartment in Multan, a house in Islamabad, and a plot in Quetta all valued at around Rs76m.

Caretaker Finance Minister Dr Shamshad Akhtar “does not own any car or any vehicle”.

She said she inherited gold worth Rs200,000 and her household items, including furniture are valued at Rs200,000. However, Dr Akhtar has gifted assets worth Rs2.19m, Rs5.86m cash in hand or in her bank account.

She has investments worth Rs134m in T-bills, other papers, and stocks, while she has brought assets of more than Rs2.79bn from abroad into the country. Her properties included a plot in Islamabad, one house and a plot in DHA Karachi — both gifted by her father — valued at around Rs4.57m.

The minister for privatisation, Fawad Hasan Fawad, a former bureaucrat has a significant huge loan of Rs130m, but his only property is a 100-yard plot in Gwadar, valued at Rs357,000.

He has four businesses in the country worth Rs3.90m; however, he and his wife have assets, including jewellery, household items cash in hand and banks worth more than Rs96m.

Caretaker Information Minister Murtaza Solangi, also a retired government employee, has a modest net worth of Rs23.20m which includes all cash holdings, and movable and immovable properties. Mr Solangi has a house in Islamabad valued at Rs12.74m, around Rs3m cash, while his wife has two properties in the federal capital worth Rs3.15m.

He owns a small consultancy business worth Rs25,000, a 2012 model car valued at Rs1.25m, his wife owns four tola gold and around Rs1.95m cash in hand or bank. The couple owns furniture, fittings and household items worth Rs1m.

Note: An earlier version of this report carried an incorrect value for Sarfaraz Bugti’s total net worth.

Published in Dawn, November 17th, 2023