Daily Times

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Television Corporation (PTVC) has removed Dr Nauman Niaz from his position as director sports and syndication and posted him as an officer on special duty (OSD) due to ever-growing mismanagement, irregularities and a one-man show in the state-owned TV channel. The decision to ‘dethrone’ him was taken on Monday (January 16) through an Office Order No. HAS/914/424, and the news became a hot topic in national as well as social media yesterday (Tuesday). The PTVC had been under massive pressure from the last one year due to the growing complaints and cases against Dr Niaz. Recent Blogs published against Dr Niaz in newspapers and social media websites added fuel to the fire. During his tenure as the director sports, not only the careers of many anchors, commentators, producers and young talent had suffered but the standard of coverage of sports, especially cricket, had also dwindled and hit rock bottom.

Sources in the PTV have revealed that due to personal insecurities and disliking, Niaz had banned international commentators like former cricketers Aamir Sohail and Bazid Khan and sidelined popular cricket broadcasters such as Tariq Saeed, Mirza Iqbal Baig, Tariq Rahim and anchors like Aalyia Rasheed, Ahmar Naqvi and Rehan Ul Haq etc. Dr Niaz, in his Blog in a newspaper last week, had accused that Bazid Khan, son of former Pakistan cricket great Majid Khan, got commentary gigs at Ten Sports, the host broadcaster of the Pakistan Cricket Board and many other cricket boards, after his name was unduly pushed by his father and an ex-chairman of the International Cricket Council (ICC). The former director sports had also confessed in the Blog that he had used his influence to silence the famous cricket statistician and journalist Mazhar Arshad, who was vocal against the substandard sports coverage of PTV Sports on Twitter.

In addition to that he had also been an obstacle in the way of success of the young talent that was successfully hosting a football talk-show ‘Kick Off’. The careers of Haider Azhar and Humayun Nazir to mention a few had suffered due to his personal enmity. The unprofessionalism and mismanagement was so rife in the state organisation that Dr Niaz, despite being the director of the channel, was barely seen in the office as it clashed with the timings of his clinic and paid visits to the channel only for his on-screen presence. During the Pakistan cricket team’s international matches it was only due to his clinic timings that the lunch time shows were put off as he was busy with his patients and youngsters were not allowed to conduct any show.

“Dr Niaz had such a monopoly that recently a senior cricket women journalist Alyia Rasheed’s show was stopped after only one episode due to his opposition and hurdles,” added the sources. The coverage of domestic cricket had gone down so much so that during one of his own shows legendary fast bowler Wasim Akram, working as an expert in the ongoing series between Pakistan and Australia, had suggested him to improve the coverage whereas former speedster Shoaib Akhtar had asked him to improve the quality of commentary. It is pertinent to mention that the Pakistan Cricket Board had objected sub-standard coverage of domestic cricket many a time. “A major reason behind substandard coverage was that Dr Niaz had taken control of everything, including the promos and the voice-overs with his own sub-standard style, and sidelined the most competent and senior cricket producer,” maintained the sources.

There had also been some unfair and harsh criticism on the Pakistan Test captain Misbahul Haq from Dr Niaz lately and that instigated Misbah to come on Twitter and gave a clarification and retweet a Blog written against Dr Niaz. The PTVC hierarchy was also unhappy with him for paying former international foreign cricketers more than their market worth.” It must be mentioned here that the PTVC is run by tax-payers’ money. Dr Niaz was paying foreign cricketers hefty amount in dollars while on the other hand local anchors, commentators and freelance workers of PTV Sports have not been paid for the last two years. Last year Bazid Khan’s cheque was bounced. The sources have also claimed that Dr Niaz was now using his contacts and trying to pressurize the Ministry of Information to reverse the order against him.