41.   The Freedom Party holds portfolios including justice, defense, finance and transport.

42.   The portfolio currently is held by Natheer Rasheed, former chief of the General Intelligence Department.

43.   Two of the changes involved appointments of deputy ministers to ministries where the sole portfolios had been held by full ministers.

44.   Women also held portfolios for justice, education, land and transportation, and environment.

45.   He declined to name any potential ministers, and he left open the option of tapping non-MPs to hold key portfolios.

46.   He held such portfolios as construction, defence and national land.

47.   In that case Peres may only name those who will be in the cabinet without saying which portfolios they will hold.

48.   Another senior official acknowledged that Peres, who also holds the defense portfolio, is in a tight spot with elections looming.

49.   Apart from being SLORC chairman, Than Shwe is also prime minister and defence minister, portfolios both held by Chaowalit in Thailand.

50.   Arjun Singh, who held the portfolio of human resource development, resigned on Saturday in a brazen challenge to Rao, who is also the Congress president.