People being misled on ATV employees issue: SRBC

ISLAMABAD: Shalimar Recording and Broadcasting Company (SRBC), an autonomous body working under the Ministry of Information Broadcasting, National History and Literary Heritage, has rejected reports carried by a section of the media that employees of Sports Star International (SSI) working in ATV have lost their jobs because of the cancellation of contract between SRBC and SSI.

“The correct position is that, the SRBC and SSI had entered into a contract, under which, SSI was made bound to make regular, monthly payments to SRBC for commercial airtime,” an SRBC spokesperson said in a statement Sunday.

He said that the SSI despite being given ample time to abide by its contractual obligations, defaulted on its commitments and its arrears of payments went up to Rs580 million. The SRBC then terminated the contract and initiated legal proceedings against the SSI for the recovery of the government arrears.

The spokesperson said the SRBC had been pressing the SSI for long to discharge its contractual obligations, but it had been delaying payments on one pretext or the other, despite various extensions and opportunities.

The SRBC was left with no other option but to severe relations and terminate the contract with it in order to protect the interests of the company and its shareholders, who represented the Government of Pakistan, he added.

The spokesperson regretted that the SSI after failing to fulfill its commitments and getting rebuffed by the courts, had now resorted to exploiting its employees, who were earlier working for ATV.

A matter, which was essentially a case of willful default of payments on the part of SSI, was being twisted for vested and commercial interests of the management of SSI, he added.

He said the contract between the SSI and the SRBC was of temporary nature and for a fixed period, and, therefore, the SSI should have made recruitments for ATV accordingly.

The spokesperson stated the Civil Court had recently dismissed a petition filed by the SSI against termination of contract by the SRBC.

Similarly, the Islamabad High Court had rejected on merit a petition for stay order moved by M/s SSI.

The spokesperson said the SRBC fully supported the ATV employees, but it was a legal obligation of the SSI to pay dues.

Any issue of ATV employees was between them and the SSI only, and the SRBC had nothing to do with it, he added.

He expressed the hope that the SSI would desist from misleading its employees or the general public and abstain from exploiting its employees for vested and commercial interests of its management.

The SRBC, the spokesperson said, was initiating legal proceedings for recovery of the outstanding dues from the SSI and any other relief that might accrue to it as per contractual obligations and law of the land.