Retired employees of Pakistan Television (PTV) from across the country gathered at the National Press Club in Islamabad to demand immediate payment of their pensions and benefits, as well as an end to corruption and mismanagement in the organization. The press conference, led by Muhammad Ashraf, focal person of the All Pakistan PTV Pensioners Union, highlighted the financial and emotional hardships faced by hundreds of former employees and their families due to unpaid dues.
Speakers at the event accused the PTV management and government of consistently neglecting the rights of retired staff. They alleged that while pensioners struggle for their basic entitlements, the institution suffers from widespread corruption, unnecessary expenditures, illegal appointments, and favoritism in awarding contracts, resulting in significant and ongoing losses to the national exchequer.
Union leaders claimed to possess documentary evidence of corruption within PTV, including serious financial irregularities in program procurements, contract appointments, and budget allocations, involving both past and present officials. They announced plans to submit this evidence to relevant authorities such as the National Accountability Bureau (NAB), Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), and the Auditor General of Pakistan to seek justice.
Expressing dismay, Muhammad Ashraf and other leaders including Ismatullah Niazi, Parvez Akhtar Bhatti, and Zafarullah Khan, recounted that many retired employees, after serving the organization for 30 to 35 years, are being denied their due pensions and benefits. They noted that widows, orphans, and legal heirs of deceased employees also face severe financial and psychological distress due to delayed or withheld payments.
The union called on the federal government to allocate dedicated funds for PTV pensioners in the upcoming national budgets to ensure timely disbursement and to avoid further delays. They revealed that at least 400 retired staff members have been deprived of their pensions for several years, urging immediate restoration of their benefits.
Additionally, the union rejected proposals to abolish the monthly PTV fee of 35 rupees, warning that eliminating this fee would worsen the organization’s financial crisis and directly harm both employees and retirees. They stressed that while reforms are essential, removing the fee is not the solution; instead, eradicating corruption and mismanagement should be the priority to ensure the institution’s survival and the provision of pensions.
Concluding the press conference, Muhammad Ashraf announced that if the government and PTV administration fail to address the pensioners’ demands, the All Pakistan PTV Pensioners Union will begin a peaceful protest in Islamabad and hold the authorities responsible. He appealed to the Prime Minister, Federal Minister of Information, Secretary of Information, and the PTV Managing Director to resolve the retirees’ issues on humanitarian grounds, so elderly citizens are not forced to spend their final years in distress.
