Islamabad:
The head of Jamiat Ulema-E-Islam (JUI-F), Maulana Fazlur Rehman, assured parliamentary journalists on Monday of his full support on their grievances on the bill for modifying PECA.
He noted that politics and journalism have always been deeply linked, especially in the parliamentary landscape.
He was expressed during his visit to the office of the Parliamentarian Reporters Association (PRA) in Parliament, where he was welcomed by the president of PRA, Usman Khan, the secretary Naveed Akbar and other members of the body.
During the visit, PRA officials informed the head of Jui-F on the PECA amendment bill.
“The legislators are planning legislation on the basis of specific circumstances, but over time, these laws lose their relevance,” said the head of JUI-F.
He also targeted the role of state institutions, saying: “It is surprising to see how, for the powers in place, the Constitution seems to be a malleable tool, as if it were never supposed to govern the country, but rather be governed by them “.
Reiterating his position against the PECA law, he said that journalists should have been consulted before his amendments. “I had urged the president to take the opinions of journalists and to involve media organizations before signing the bill. I also asked him to delay his approval, but external pressure led to the rapid promulgation of the project law, “he said.
According to him, the government initially sought to push the amendment without writing a formal text. “They wanted an immediate vote, but when a project was requested, only after an intense opposition, it was finally presented.”
He argued that the acceptance of the project in its original form would actually have transformed Pakistan into a “nominal democracy with the essence of martial law”.