In a recent meeting held in Islamabad, the Regional Press Committee of the All Pakistan Newspapers Society (APNS) discussed severe financial challenges faced by the print media, especially regional newspapers. The meeting, chaired by Muhammad Humayun Gulzar, included notable figures such as Senator Sarmad Ali, President of APNS, Muhammad Athar Kazi, Secretary General, and Shahab Zuberi, Vice President.
The committee highlighted the ongoing issue of delayed payments from clients, including substantial arrears from various federal government departments. This delay placed significant financial strain on newspapers, undermining their operational viability.
During the deliberations, members advocated for abolishing the centralised policy on government advertising. They proposed reinstating the previous system where client departments could recommend their preferred media outlets for advertising. This change, the committee argued, would increase advertisement volume for newspapers and allow the Press Information Department (PID) more flexibility in advertisement placement across different media platforms.
Further, the committee urged for the empowerment of PID’s regional offices in Karachi, Hyderabad, Quetta, Lahore, and Peshawar. They recommended immediately discontinuing the current practice where media recommendations by these regional offices are modified at the central level to enhance efficiency and responsiveness.
Additionally, the members called for simplifying the procedural requirements for renewing newspaper declarations and transferring declarations following a publisher’s death, describing the current procedures as unnecessarily burdensome.
The meeting also served as an occasion for the committee members to express their condolences for recent losses within their community, including the sister of Munir Jillani, the son of Qazi Imtiaz, and the father of Noorullah Malik. A moment of Fateha was observed in memory of the departed souls.
Attendees included prominent regional newspaper representatives such as Muhammad Humayun Gulzar from Sayadat Bahawalpur, Tanveer Siddiqui from Aaj Peshawar, Mohsin Siyal from Aftab Multan, and several others.
