LAHORE: Provincial Information Minister Fayyazul Hasan Chohan on Wednesday asked Hamza Shahbaz to play his role as the opposition leader in the Punjab Assembly and not become an absconder.

He also urged PML-N leaders to face accountability with the same persistence and courage with which they had allegedly plundered the country.

Talking to the media outside the Punjab Assembly, Chohan said Hamza preferred visiting London over attending the assembly session. He was trying to leave for London in the middle of the night, but was “caught red-handed by the security agencies”. “Now no one can escape through the backdoor. Face the cases with courage,” he asserted.

The minister said those who plundered the country should not be dealt with leniently.

“Some demand democracy and some say the system is in danger whenever they are asked to account for their corruption,” he said.

Cultural policy: Fayyazul Hassan Chohan claims that cultural policy for Punjab has been approved for the first time.

Briefing the media on the 100-day performance of his department at Alhamra Art Centre, he said [for the cultural policy] he held over 100 meetings with different stakeholders. He said the government was planning to establish a film authority board to address issues related to cinema. He said the government was also introducing an advertisement policy.

The minister said Rs7m had been allocated for Artist Support Fund Programme. A new show ‘Voice of Punjab’ would also be introduced by the government to tap singing talent from Punjab. He said regarding press laws a bill ‘Press, Newspapers, News Agencies and Books Registration Act 2018’, would be drafted under which complaints would be treated with regard to provincial audit bureau of circulation.

Published in Dawn, December 13th, 2018