Arif Alvi, one of the founding members of the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party, was sworn in as the country’s 13th president on Sunday, reported Dawn. Chief Justice of Pakistan Mian Saqib Nisar administered the oath to the 69-year-old at a ceremony in Capital city Islamabad.
Alvi took over a day after Mamnoon Hussain’s five-year term ended.
Prime Minister Imran Khan, Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa, other top leaders, as well as a few Saudi and Chinese diplomats attended the oath-taking ceremony, reported The Express Tribune.
Alvi was elected president last week after he defeated Pakistan Peoples Party candidate Aitzaz Ahsan and joint candidate of other Opposition parties Maulana Fazl ul Rehman. According to the Pakistan Election Commission, 1,110 legislators, with 689 votes, voted in the elections. Alvi secured 353 votes, Ahsan got 124 votes, and Rehman 185. Twenty-seven votes were declared invalid.
After his election on September 5, Alvi said the new government wants to serve the masses. “I am not the president of PTI alone, I am the president of all parties and all Pakistanis,” he had said. “I will try to be the president of all parties. I am thankful to the independents and our partners in allied government.”
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