Bangladesh interim leader Muhammad Yunus on Friday announced the portfolios of the newly-appointed consultative council, giving him charge of 27 ministries, including defence, and appointed career diplomat Mohammad Touhid Hossain as head of the foreign ministry.
Nobel laureate Yunus, 84, was sworn in as head of an interim government on Thursday, replacing Sheikh Hasina, who abruptly resigned and fled to India following deadly protests against her government over a controversial job quota system.
He took oath as Chief Advisor – a post equivalent to that of Prime Minister.
Other advisors were selected in consultation with student leaders, the military and civil society representatives.
According to an official announcement, Yunus will take charge of various ministries and will hold charge of 27 departments, including Defence, Public Administration, Education, Energy, Food, Water Resources and Information.
Former foreign secretary Hussain has been given charge of the foreign ministry, while retired army Brigadier General M Sakhawat Hussain has been tasked with overseeing the home ministry.
Hussain served as Deputy High Commissioner of Bangladesh in Kolkata from 2001 to 2005 and as Foreign Secretary of Bangladesh from 2006 to 2009.
Former Bangladesh Bank governor Salahuddin Ahmed will be in charge of the Finance and Planning Ministry, while former Attorney General AF Hasan Arif will oversee the Local Government Ministry.
Two coordinators of Students Against Discrimination, M Nahid Islam and Asif Mahmud, who were included in the interim cabinet, were given charge of the ministries of Telecommunications and Information Technology and Youth and Sports respectively.
The group had first launched a street agitation last month to reform the quota system for government jobs, which later turned into a mass movement that ousted Hasina’s 15-year-old government and installed an interim government with the explicit support of the military.
Three members of the advisory council, mostly from civil society, could not take the oath at the Bangabhaban Presidential Palace on Thursday night as they were out of the capital and officials speculated that Yunus may allocate some of the 27 portfolios to them.
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