Daily Times

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Television Corporation (PTV), a state-run media house, has incurred a loss of Rs 9.6 billion, as it failed to launch any viable project, a report submitted to the parliamentary committee for scrutinising PTV’s performance and expenditure of funds has revealed.

The projects that have been declared non-viable were affecting the performance of the entire institution while its financial health was now touching its lowest level, the report added.

The document also highlighted that the malaises like corruption, nepotism, favouritism and violation of merit in the recruitment process, along with low-quality programmes, had imperiled survival of PTV.

During the PPP regime, these impracticable projects were launched with an aim to highlight and protect the national interests but the persons who were deployed there had ruined the projects by indulging into malpractices.

It is pertinent to mention that many officers who were inducted in these projects were allegedly holding fake degrees and now these people were shown the doors by the new administration.

The document available with the Daily Times showed that the incumbent administration failed to recover Rs 240 million from advertising companies and these funds were stuck up due to the lenient attitude of the management. The management also showed no interest in recovering Rs 381 million from different companies and media houses to whom the programmes were sold. The sale of programme to other media houses was also declining with each passing day, the document revealed. The former administration has been alleged of corruption and malpractice in the purchase of aspect radio converter and integrated receiver decoder. The equipment was procured with a cost of Rs 7.25 million from UK, but now the transaction was declared irregular.

The management was directed to recover Rs 1.19 million from Yasir Arafat, an employee who was inducted on fake degree, and Rs 1.2 million from blue-eyed recruits Khawja Salahudin and Fakhar Hameed, but the incumbent management did not take any measure for recovery.

Two close aides of former prime minister Yousaf Raza Gilani, who were inducted in PTV in the previous regime, have been asked to return Rs 7.66 million, as their appointment had been declared unlawful. PM Gilani appointed these persons against the post that did not even exist in PTV while the management failed to formulate any rules for such posts. Similarly, Mariam Qazi, who was appointed as syndicate manager, was also asked to return Rs 4.67million, as she did not possessed required qualification for the post. The document disclosed that a person should have an MBA Finance degree while Mariam Qazi was simple LLB (third division).

Another example of favouritism was the case of Muhammad Ashraf, who was inducted in PTV as investigating reporter against a monthly salary of Rs 0.2 million. One month after appointment, his salary was enhanced to Rs 250,000 and after two months, he was promoted to professional scale against the pay of Rs 305,000 per month. The document showed that the then information and broadcasting secretary granted him additional increase of Rs 40,000 per month. After another two month, the IB secretary granted him another increase of Rs 45,000 per month while the fourth increase he received was Rs 40,000.

The management has now been directed to explain the reasons behind the unusual favours Ashraf received from management. The management also purchased a drama from Karachi-based company against Rs 20.12 million but PTV failed to fetch enough ads, causing huge financial loss.

The document added that KESC has now refused to pay Rs 351 million it collected from power consumers as PTV license fee and the incumbent management also failed to recover this amount.