ISLAMABAD: President Dr. Arif Alvi has accorded his approval to Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) Amendment Bill 2023.
The president approved the bill under Article 75 of the Constitution of Pakistan, President Secretariat Press Wing said in a press release.
The bill
The bill said a parliamentary committee will be formed for the appointment of the Pemra chairman and the Ministry of Information will propose five names for the media regulatory body chief.
The parliamentary body will comprise four National Assembly members and two members of the Senate with equal representation from the treasury and opposition benches.
The committee will send a name for the Pemra chief to the president for appointment, according to the amended law.
If the parliamentary committee could not agree on the name within 30 days, then the information ministry panel will send the bill to the prime minister who will then propose a suitable name for the post and forward it to the president, as per the bill.
The amended legislation has also replaced the word salary for media workers with dues.
The bill will ensure financial security for media workers as the government will not grant ads to those media houses that will not pay the dues to journalists for consecutive two months.
