Shaukat Aziz

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This week on One on One Riz Khan meets Shaukat Aziz, the former prime minister of Pakistan. 

This softly-spoken, highly-educated international banker found himself in the thick, tangled politics of his country when a military general took over in a bloodless coup.

He went on to become a major financial reformer and popular political figurehead.

Born in Karachi, he had made a name for himself as a senior member of the Citibank team before being drawn into his country’s politics in 1999, by General Pervez Musharraf, the former president of Pakistan who took over in a bloodless coup.

Aziz was appointed finance minister, and charged with tackling the disastrous Pakistani economy, which was burdened by a lack of public trust after years of social upheaval.

Known for his pragmatic and practical approach to issues, Shaukat Aziz was named prime minister by the Pakistan Muslim League in 2004 – and it was while campaigning for the role that he survived an assassination attempt by a suicide bomber.

He served until the end of 2007, presiding over an unprecedented economic boom, after which differences with his political party made him return to the private sector.

This episode of One on One aired from Friday, January 30, 2009.