PPP rulers catch journalist agents of America, India! | Pakistan Press Foundation (PPF)

Pakistan Press Foundation

PPP rulers catch journalist agents of America, India!

By Faizan Bangash

LAHORE: The Pakistan People’s Party leadership in the Punjab Assembly continued spewing venom against the Jang Group and Geo News channel and its senior members on Monday allegedly for targeting the Presidency.

The PPP leaders termed senior journalists, attached with the Jang Group and Geo News, ‘Indian agents’ and enemies of democracy.

A spokesman of the Jang Group said that the Group had played a historic and unparalleled role in the movement for the restoration of judges. The Group, he said, also not only broke the news about the National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO) deal but also played a leading role in exposing its ill effects on Pakistani society.

He said the policy of the Jang Group to uphold the rule of law and expose corruption antagonised the former military dictator, Musharraf, who took the harshest measures against the Group, including closure of Geo channels for three months. This inflicted losses of billions of rupees on the Group. This policy of the former dictator to subjugate the Jang Group to financial crunch was followed by the present rulers in letter and spirit. As many as 99 per cent of the Group advertisements were closed, the spokesman said, adding that Geo transmissions are disrupted, distorted and its numbering is frequently changed to keep the readers confused.

The spokesman said accused the Jang Group Editor-in-Chief and Chief Executive, and other senior journalists of being agents of America, India and Jews. Similar allegations are being levelled by the present rulers. These allegations are being highlighted and disseminated, as was the practice in the Musharraf rule, through Internet and wall chalking.

The spokesman said the anti-Jang Group campaign launched by the present rulers, as was the case during the rule of military dictator Musharraf, included allegations of all kinds. They range from personal abuses to tax theft charges and then to being levelled as American, Jews and Indian agents, he said.

In fact the former military dictator and the present rulers themselves were toeing the lines of Americans and Jews, but declare others as their agents so that they could discredit those who expose their true faces. The wall chalking campaign of the government is still in full swing.

He said the government is also putting pressure on the financial institutions to refrain them from keeping normal legal ties, in accordance with the market practices, with Jang Group. Because of this government pressure the financial institutions are dealing with the Jang Group in contrast to their behaviour with other groups.
Many cases of the Jang Group, he said, are in High Courts and Supreme Court. He said ministers are daily giving fiery statements and protest rallies are being staged to harass the journalists working with the Jang Group and give a message to other media groups. In this regard life threats are also being issued.

This anti-Jang Group campaign echoed again in the Punjab Assembly today. The PPP members, chanting slogans in support of President Asif Zardari, also had a verbal row with some Pakistan Muslim League-N members, who chanted anti-Zardari slogans in the house and finally the speaker had to intervene to diffuse the tension.

Following some heated arguments between the PML-N and the PPP MPAs over corruption scandals, the
PPP parliamentary leader and Senior Minister Raja Riaz, speaking on a point of order, started criticising Daily Jang, Geo News and its senior reporters including Kamran Khan and Ansar Abbasi.
The PPP minister claimed that Kamran Khan, the famous Geo TV anchorperson, presented 560 news stories solely on President Asif Zardari, mainly to target him. He alleged that Ansar Abbasi was also working on the same agenda, i.e. to weaken democracy in Pakistan. He termed both the senior journalists ‘Indian agents’.

He said for the last two-and-a-half years, the PPP leadership was being targeted by the media and these journalists, though the coalition government wanted to strengthen democracy. At this point, no one from the house, especially from the PML-N, rose to defend the Jang Group, Geo News and senior journalists.

Raja Riaz also claimed that the PPP leaders were ready to appear before the courts whether they are summoned in the morning, afternoon or in the evening. The entire PPP camp comprising Punjab Finance Minister Tanvir Ashraf Kaira, IT Minister Farooq Ghurki, Revenue Minister Haji Ishaq and all other members thumped desk in support of Raja Riaz’ remarks against Jang and Geo.

The PPP members including Sajida Mir, Ehsanul Haq Nolatia, Tahir Mehmood Hundali, Shaukat Mehmood Basra and various other members also chanted slogans in support of Zardari. However, the situation got tense when a PML-N legislator from Gujranwala, Saeed Mughal, passed a comment against President Zardari regarding the tales of corruption associated to him and this act invoked retaliation from the PPP members, who stood up on their benches and demanded apology from him. Speaker Rana Mohammed Iqbal asked the member to seek apology for his remarks, which he had to do later on.
Source: The News
Date:10/19/2010