Aziz to succeed Jamali, PML chief is interim PM

8216;8216;Shaukat Aziz will be the prime minister after Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain,8217;8217; said Sheikh Rashid Ahmed, Information Minister in the recently dissolved Cabinet. 8216;8216;Now he Aziz will work as senior minister.8217;8217;

Musharraf plucked Aziz from Citibank to become his finance minister after seizing power in a bloodless coup in 1999, and the ex-banker has turned around the economic fortunes of a country that was virtually bankrupt.

Ahmed said Pakistan8217;s economic and foreign policies, overseen by Musharraf, would remain unchanged. 8216;8216;The government8217;s policies, especially warming ties with India, our commitment against international terrorism8230;all these policies of President Musharraf will be followed as they have been,8217;8217; he added.

Jamali tendered his resignation after meeting Musharraf and told the media he had stepped down to save the political system and bolster the PML party.

Analysts believe Musharraf has been seeking to replace Jamali with someone better equipped to counter parliamentary Opposition and aggressively pursue reform programmes. 8212;Reuters