Lawmakers, Bureaucrats Draw Hefty Fees on PTCL, Ufone Boards
Law makers and bureaucrats are sitting on the board of directors (BoD) of PTCL and its subsidiary Ufone who are making millions by charging fee in dollars.
They are said to charge $5000 for each meeting of the board they attend.
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Senator Anusha Rehman is also part of the Ufone board of directors. The senate standing committee on IT was also informed that one bureaucrat was also a member of Ufone who was also sitting on five boards of state owned companies.
A female government officer is a member of 5 different boards, Senator Afnanullah,” said during the senate panel’s meeting held on Tuesday.
The Senate Standing Committee on IT and Telecommunications chaired by Senator Palwasha Khan on Tuesday reviewed the composition of the Boards of Directors of Pakistan Telecommunication Company Limited (PTCL) and Ufone.
The Ministry of IT and Telecom submitted a detailed list of board members and their positions.
The senate panel also reviewed several issues, including mobile service shutdowns, rising mobile internet package rates, the Islamabad household survey, and governance of state-run institutions.
During the meeting, it was revealed that Senator Anusha Rahman, a member of the Senate IT Committee, has also been serving on one of the telecom boards. Senator Saadia Abbasi questioned whether other MNAs and Senators were similarly serving on the boards of state-owned enterprises (SOEs).
They noted that several lawmakers and public figures hold seats across multiple corporate boards.
Senator Afnan Ullah pointed out that a single female government officer currently sits on five different boards. He stressed that such practices raise concerns about transparency, merit, and potential conflicts of interest.
The committee also expressed strong reservations over the manner in which boards of major public institutions and SOEs were being constituted. The panel also called for stricter scrutiny, merit-based appointments, and a clear framework to prevent overlap between legislative roles and board memberships.
The committee decided to continue its review of board compositions and indicated that further examination of the appointment process would follow in upcoming sessions
NCCIA officials briefed on corruption inquiries against officers. Officials said that two FIRs were registered against NCCIA officers over alleged involvement in corruption.One FIR has been registered in Lahore and the other in Islamabad, officials
As many as 8 officers have been named in one FIR whereas the 10 officers have been named in the second FIR, officials said adding that these officers belong to grades 16 to 18.
The senate panel was informed that FIA had recovered Rs 425 million in the first FIR.The standing committee has summoned FIA officials in the next meeting.
The committee also expressed reservations over the collection of citizens’ data through household surveys in Islamabad.
They warned that the absence of an effective data protection law in Pakistan could put citizens’ lives and property at risk if sensitive information is leaked.
The shutdown of the mobile network in Lakki Marwat district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa came under discussion. Senator Atta-ur-Rehman said the government routinely suspends mobile services citing security reasons.
He questioned how an elected representative or citizen would communicate in an emergency. The PTA chairman clarified that decisions to suspend mobile and internet services are taken by the Ministry of Interior and the federal government. He added that the PTA only implements these orders.
Federal Minister for IT Shaza Fatima admitted that mobile service suspensions have been affecting economic activity.
She claimed that Pakistan still has cheapest mobile internet rates globally. She also maintained that the government plans to auction the 5G spectrum within the next two months. The PTA chairman noted that the cheapest mobile data package currently amounts to Rs 147.
The Deputy Commissioner Islamabad briefed the committee that a door-to-door survey was being carried out on the Prime Minister’s instructions.
He said that data from 32,000 households had been collected so far. Committee members, however, voiced concern over the unclear legal basis of the survey and the absence of safeguards for data security and citizens’ privacy.
