Yousaf Raza Gillani

Who is Yousaf Raza Gillani?

Syed Yousuf Raza Gillani also spelled Gilani is a Pakistani politician who served as the 16th Prime minister of Pakistan from 25 March 2008 until his retroactive disqualification and ouster by the Supreme Court of Pakistan on 26 April 2012. He currently serves as the vice chairman of the central committee committee of the Pakistan Peoples Party.

After 1988 general elections, he secured his ministerial appointment in the Ministry of Tourism in the government of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto, and since then, he had been a senior member of parliament for the Multan District. After his party securing the plurality in the 1993 general elections, Gillani was elevated 15th Speaker of the National Assembly by the-Prime minister Benazir Bhutto, a post he held until 16 February 1997. On 11 February 2001, Gillani was imprisoned in the infamous Adiala Jail by a military court instituted under President Pervez Musharraf on accusations and charges of corruption, and released on 7 October 2006.

In the wake of 2008 general elections, his party formed a four-party coalition alliance and nominated him for the office of Prime minister. He is the first prime minister from the Saraiki-speaking belt, and also holds the distinction for successfully presenting five consecutive federal budgets. As Prime minister, Gillani announced the formation of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, rehabilitation of the troubled and war-torn tribal belt, and promised to reduce the federal budget deficit as well as announcing his ambitions to improve the system of education. This was followed by announcing the new agriculture, land and economic policy that lifted the bans on labour and students' unions, while worked and implemented the new energy and nuclear policies to tackle the energy crisis in the country. But his policies, without meaningful economic reforms, led to a high rise in inflation and sharp decline in economic performance, a period referred to as "Era of Stagflation".