APNS flays govt’s neglect to fulfill written undertaking to clear dues
KARACHI: The All Pakistan Newspapers Society has strongly flayed the consistent default of the federal government to honor its written commitments to clear the long outstanding dues, which compelled the APNS to suspend the federal government’s advertising on March 12, an APNS press release stated.
Sarmad Ali, Secretary General, All Pakistan Newspapers Society, announced the decisions of the Executive Committee meeting held in Lahore. He said that the federal government in written undertakings as well as verbal guarantees had committed to clear the long outstanding dues pertaining to the period July 2000 to 2008, outstanding bills of advertising agencies for the years 2010-11 as well as the dues relating to devolved ministries amounting to Rs1,580 million. On these commitments, the APNS had lifted the ban on advertisements of the federal government but despite a lapse of seven weeks, the payment was not released.
The Executive Committee has therefore, decided to suspend the advertisements of federal government again w.e.f. Monday, March 12, 2012 and to launch an advertisement campaign informing the public on default of the government and also approved the option of calling a nation-wide strike of newspapers to highlight the issue.
The Executive Committee approved the annual report of the Executive Committee for the years 2011-12 and annual accounts for the years 2011. It also approved draft amendments to the memoranda and articles of association of the society and rules and regulations for conduct of advertising agencies and media buying houses, which will be placed before the Extraordinary General Council Meeting in the morning of March 31, 2012.
It decided to hold the annual General Council Meeting on March 31, 2012 at the newly-constructed APNS House. The General Council will elect members of the Executive Committee for the years 2012-13, who will elect the new office bearers for the next term.
The executive committee reviewed the preparations for the annual awards and decided to request the President of Pakistan Mr Asif Ali Zardari to be the chief guest at the ceremony, which is scheduled to be held between March 21-28, at the convenience of the president of Pakistan.
The Punjab-based members briefed the Executive Committee that the amended media policy of the Government of the Punjab has not yet been approved. The Executive Committee urged upon the Chief Minister Punjab Main Shahbaz Sharif to give approval to the amendments made by the Joint Committee of the APNS and DGPR.
The Executive Committee approved applications for associate membership of daily Front Lahore and Daily Jurrat, Peshawar. It also decided to terminate membership of daily Hairat Multan, daily Independent Hub, daily Mashriq, Evening Special Quetta, daily Shelter Faisalabad, daily Islamabad Times, Islamabad and The Frontier Post, Quetta in default of providing complimentary copies despite various notices.
The meeting was attended by the following: Mehtab Khan, Senior Vice President, Umer Mujib Shami, Vice President, Sarmad Ali, Secretary General, Rameeza Majid Nizami, Joint Secretary, Syed Muhammad Munir Gilani, Finance Secretary, Mumtaz A. Tahir (D/AftaB) Anwar Farooqui (D/Aghaz), Danish Iftikhar (D/Asas), Waseem Ahmed (D/Awam, Quetta), Ahmed Noman (D/Akhbar), Najamuddin Sheikh (D/Deyanat), Kazi Asad Abid (D/Khabrain), Muhtaq A. Qureshi (M/Naey Ufaq), Sardar Khan Niazi (M/Naya rukh), Rukhasana Saulat Saleemi (W/Nikhar), Ilyas Shakir (D/Qaumi Akhbar), Jamil Ather (D/Tijarat), Syed Haroon Shah (D/Wahdat) and Altaf Hasan Qureshi (M/Urdu Digest).
Masood Hamid (D/Dawn), Irfan Ather (D/Jurrat), Humayon Gulzar (D/Sayadat), Sh. Iftekhar Adil (D/Asas) and Imran Athar (D/Tijarat) attended as special observers.
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