Bill seeking to clip PEMRA chairman’s powers presented in NA

ISLAMABAD: The information ministry has presented the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority Bill 2023 in the National Assembly, seeking to curtail the powers of the regulatory body’s chairman.

Information Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb, while talking about the key points of the bill, said that the powers to shut down any programme or suspend a channel for violation of PEMRA laws has been transferred to the proposed Council of Complaints from the PEMRA chairman.

She said that the Council of Complaints is being established within PEMRA, where employees can register complaints related to their salaries.

She further said that representation is being given to the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists and the Pakistan Broadcasting Association within the PEMRA authority for the first time.

The bill, a copy of which is available with Hum News, states, “Disinformation means verifiably false, misleading, manipulated, created, or fabricated information, which is disseminated, or shared with the intention to cause harm to the reputation of or to harass any person for political, personal or financial interest or gains without making an effort, to get other person’s points of view or not giving it proper coverage and space but does not include misinformation.”

The bill defines misinformation as, “verifiable false content or information that is unintentionally disseminated or shared.”

Aurangzeb, also expressed her appreciation for the media for their collaborative efforts in formulating the newly introduced law.