Zardari revokes sacking of Khosa by PM

By Syed Irfan Raza

ISLAMABAD: A dormant cold war between President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani heated up on Tuesday when the former rejected the latter's decision to remove his adviser on Information Technology (IT), Sardar Latif Khosa.

Latif Khosa is Advisor to Prime Minister on Information Technology and Telecommunication.-File photo

The president revoked the decision of the prime minister during a meeting with Mr Khosa at the Presidency, when the adviser presented his resignation.

Sources in the IT ministry said Prime Minister Gilani and senior bureaucrats in the ministry were not 'happy' with the way the adviser worked.

The IT secretary is reported to close to the prime minister and his working relations with Mr Khosa were not 'cordial'; he always complained to the prime minister about the adviser's handling of administrative and financial matters, the sources said.

On the other hand, Mr Khosa is reported to have told the president that he was not allowed to work 'independently' in the ministry.He tendered his resignation after a notification of the Cabinet Division was issued on Monday, saying that Mr Khosa had been removed from the office of the adviser.

The notification issued by a deputy secretary said: "The undersigned is directed to state that Cabinet Division's office memorandum of even number date 27th March 2010, designating Sardar Muhammad Latif Khosa, Adviser to the Prime Minister on Information Technology, as Minister-in-Charge for the Ministry of Information and Technology, is hereby withdrawn with immediate effect.

"Consequent upon the above decision the prime minister, himself will henceforth look after the Ministry of Information Technology as per first proviso to rule 3(4) of the Rules of Business, 1973."

But according to the president's spokesman, Mr Zardari in his capacity of PPP's co-chairperson did not accept Mr Khosa's resignation.

Presidential spokesman Farhatullah Babar quoted President Zardari as saying that Mr Khosa was an old party loyalist who had "remained steadfast and served selflessly the cause of democracy and the party through tick and thin".

The president said Mr Khosa stood by the slain PPP leader Benazir Bhutto and the party leadership in difficult times. Besides, he was a gifted and competent person whom the party and the government would not abandon.

The president asked Mr Khosa to take back his resignation and continue working as adviser to the prime minister.

Several reports have appeared in the media in recent days about differences between the president and prime minister on several issues but both of them have denied the reports in their separate statements.