ISLAMABAD:September 12, 2022: The National Assembly Standing Committee on Information and Broadcasting took serious notice of malicious media campaign about the parliamentary delegation’s recent visit to Canada in connection with 65th Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference (CPC).
The Committee also expressed grave concerns on the fake social media news about a secret meeting between Prime Minister/Pakistani officials with the Israeli officials in Doha and malicious media campaign against flood relief activities of UNO in Pakistan.
Therefore, the Committee directed the Secretary, Ministry of Interior, Director General, Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), Director, Cyber Crime Wing, FIA, Chairman Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) and Chairman, Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) to take punitive action against anti-state characters behind such social media campaigns.
The 33rd meeting of the Standing Committee was held today at 2:00 p.m. in the Parliament House, Islamabad under the Chairpersonship of Ms. Javaria Zafar Aheer, MNA.
The Secretary, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting briefed the Committee regarding coverages of malicious media campaign about the Parliamentary Delegation’s visit to Canada in connection with 65th CPC in social/electronic media.
The Committee took serious notice of malicious media campaign about the Parliamentary Delegation’s recent visit to Canada. The Committee also expressed grave concerns on the fake social media news about a secret meeting between Prime Minister/Pakistani officials with the Israeli officials in Doha and malicious media campaign against flood relief activities of UNO in Pakistan. The Committee directed the Secretary, Ministry of Interior, Director General, Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), Director, Cyber Crime Wing, FIA, Chairman Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) and Chairman, Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) to take punitive action against anti-state characters behind such social media campaigns.
The Committee also unanimously condemned the planned media campaigns against National Assembly delegation’s visit to Canada, Prime Minister Office, fake social media news about a secret meeting between Prime Minister/Pakistani officials with the Israeli officials in Doha and Indian media campaign against flood relief activities of UNO in Pakistan. The Chairperson of the Standing Committee (Ms. Javaria Zafar Aheer, MNA) categorically pointed out that halting such media campaigns against Pakistan, Parliament and the Parliamentarians requires cooperation of Government and Private Media Organizations as such campaigns were to create trust deficit between Public and their Representatives and detriment the sanctity of the Parliament.
The Committee deferred the legislative business (Government Bills). “The Motion Pictures (Amendment) Bill, 2020”, “The Pakistan Broadcasting Corporation (Amendment) Bill, 2020” and “The Associated Press of Pakistan Corporation (Amendment), 2020” and decided to consider the said important legislative business when the Minister for Information and Broadcasting is available
The meeting was attended by Mr. Armaghan Subhani, Mr. Saad Waseem, Mr. Nadeem Abbas, Ms Zaib Jaffar, Ms. Maiza Hameed, Ms. Kiran Imran Dar, Dr. Nafisa Shah, Mr. Zulfiqar Ali Behan, Ms. Naz Baloch, Hon. MNAs The senior officers from Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Ministry of Law & Justice, Press Information Department (PID) and PEMRA were also present in the meeting.