ISLAMABAD: The Council of Complaints for the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) on Thursday gave 30-day time to the LTN Family to clear dues of the aggrieved journalists while directing some other media houses to present their stance in the next meeting.
The Council issued the directives during its 89th meeting which took place at the PEMRA Headquarters.
According to a news release, the 89th meeting was of the utmost importance as the Council had been authorized by the recent amendment in the PEMRA Act to address the complaints registered by the electronic media’s journalists regarding non-payment of their salaries by the media houses.
Furthermore, the Council had also been authorized to recommend penalties if directives/ recommendations were flouted. Chairperson of the Council Syed Muhammad Ali presided over today’s meeting which took up the complaints filed against Geo, Talon, BOL News and LTN Family for non-payment of salaries.
Senior journalist Imtiaz Alam filed a complaint against Geo; senior anchorperson Rauf Kalasra against Talon News; Sami Ibrahim, Imran Waseem and others against BOL News; and Imtiaz Ali and Syed Arif Raza Zaidi against the LTN Family.
Earlier, All Pakistan Newspapers and Electronic Media Employees Confederation (APNEC) has welcomed the restoration of health insurance scheme for journalists, as announced by the government in the budget year 2024-25. APNEC Chairman Muhammad Siddique Anzar in a statement expressed gratitude to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, saying the step would benefit thousands of journalists and media workers.
Anzar said the decision would establish a cordial relationship between journalists and the government and would help discourage the perpetrators of carrying out malicious propaganda against the country and the nation. –Agencies
