ISLAMABAD : The Federal Secretary for Information and Broadcasting, Ms. Ambreen Jan, held a detailed meeting with the newly formed Federal Capital Committee (Islamabad & Rawalpindi) of APNS, under the Chairmanship of Mr. Faisal Zahid Malik, Chairman & CEO Pakistan Observer.
Also present were senior officials from the Ministry, including Mr. Mobashir Hasan (Principal Information Officer), Mr. Ashiq Hussain Sheikh (Director General, IP Wing), Mr. Sohail Aftab (Director), Mr. Adnan Arjmand (Deputy Director), and Mr. Arshad Khan (Deputy Director).
Members of the Federal Capital Committee who attended included Mr. Khushnood Ali Khan (Editor-in-Chief, Daily Sahafat), Mr. Waseem Ahmad (Editor-in-Chief, Daily Awam), Mr. Ansar Mahmood Bhatti (Editor-in-Chief, Monthly Centreline), Mr. Agha Bilal (Head of Marketing, Daily Dawn), Mr. Abid Mughal (Regional Head Marketing, Daily Khabrain), and Syed Amjad Ali (Daily Jang).
This first official meeting of the FCC marked a meaningful exchange on media policy, government- press collaboration, and mutual efforts to strengthen responsible journalism in the federal capital region.
At the outset, the APNS delegation congratulated Ms. Ambreen Jan on her elevation to Grade-22 and expressed optimism about enhanced collaboration between the ministry and media stakeholders. The Chairman Mr. Faisal Zahid Malik thanked to Mr. Ataullah Tarar, Federal Minister for acknowledging the role of Pakistani Media in the recent Pakistan India War.
The APNS representatives raised several key issues during the meeting, including: Pending payments to APNS member publications for government advertisements: unfair distribution of advertisement share among APNS member outlets: non-implementation of revised advertisement rates that were previously promised: suspension of government advertisements to the newspaper DAWN, highlighting the need for an equitable and inclusive policy and operational challenges posed by the Press Registrar’s office and the Press Council of Pakistan.
Responding to these concerns, the Federal Secretary, Ambreen Jan assured the APNS delegation of the government's commitment to resolving the issues through mutual understanding and cooperation. She directed the PIO and DG (IP) to immediately examine and address the concerns regarding delayed payments and ad distribution and assured that dues will be paid by June 30, 2025 positively.
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