ISLAMABAD: The National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Information and Broadcasting was informed on Tuesday that Pemra already had a defined code of conduct for airing contents, but Pakistan Broadcasters’ Association (PBA) was following its own regulations.

The committee meeting, presided over by MNA Marvi Memon, discussed the issue related to Geo TV and members inquired about the information ministry’s future course of action.

Information Secretary Dr Nazir Saeed informed the committee that Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (Pemra) had a code of conduct, but he avoided saying anything about issues related to its implementation.

“The best solution to avoid anything similar to the ongoing situation is to have a higher degree of self-accountability by all TV channels,” the information secretary said.

The committee was divided over punishment and penalties for the channels violating the code of conduct, but it decided to form a 10-member legal task force to recommend media-related laws.

The task force has been given four to six months to prepare its recommendations.

The terms of reference of the task force is to conduct a comprehensive review of all existing laws, rules, regulations at the federal, provincial and local levels.

The meeting was attended by MNAs Murad Saeed, Waseem Akhtar Shaikh, Muhammad Tallal Chaudhry, Parveen Masood Bhatti, Syed Amir Ali Shah Jamote, Naeema Kishwar Khan, Arifa Khalid Parvez, Marriyum Aurangzeb and Ms Belum Hasnain.

Published in Dawn, May 14th, 2014.