Pemra chairman appointed as per SC orders, ECP told

ISLAMABAD: The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting in a reply to a query by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) with regards to the appointment of Principal Information Officer (PIO) Muhammad Saleem as Chairman of Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (Pemra) has said the appointment was made strictly in line with the directions of the Supreme Court.

It was learnt that the ministry had prepared a reply Tuesday to be submitted to the Election Commission, when the electoral body had sought explanation from the ministry, referring to reports about new chairman Pemra’s appointment, citing the ban imposed on new appointments.

The ministry maintained that the appointment had been made in line with the directions from the Supreme Court, as Chief Justice of Pakistan Justice Mian Saqib Nisar had contended that a transparent process should be adopted vis-à-vis the appointment of a new chairman Pemra.

The apex court had constituted a committee headed by Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission Sartaj Aziz and its members were Hameed Haroon, Arif Nizami, Mian Amir Mehmood and Secretary Information and Broadcasting Sardar Ahmad Nawaz Sukhera.

The committee advertised the post in newspapers and as many as 172 candidates filed applications, and after shortlisting, 60 were invited for interviews; they were interviewed at the Planning Division. And, on the basis of these interviews, the five-member panel gave first position to Muhammad Saleem, followed by Mr Aslam and Kamran Ali.

The ministry noted that the entire selection process was in accordance with the apex court directions and carried out in a transparent manner and purely on merit. The list of these aspirants of the top Pemra post was accordingly sent to Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, who approved Muhammad Saleem’s name for the post. The summary was then dispatched to President Mamnoon Hussain for endorsement. It was also mentioned in the summary that the entire process was transparent as per the directions given by the Supreme Court.