LAHORE: Punjab Information Minister Fayyazul Hassan Chohan on Sunday bluntly responded to PML-N President Shahbaz Sharif’s demand for interest-free loans for the media industry, questioning why the PML-N government did not pay billions of rupees owed to the industry under the head of advertisements.

Despite the fact that all advertisements during the PML-N tenure were aimed at Sharif brothers’ personal publicity or initiating a smear campaign against Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan, Mr Chohan said in a video message that the prime minister still directed his government to pay the outstanding bills of the media industry. “This decision was a proof of Mr Khan’s media friendliness,” he claimed.

Under the leadership of Imran Khan, he said, the PTI government was always ready to facilitate the media.

He also said the government had decided to release SPL adpayments daily and was considering giving 16 per cent exemption in provincial taxes to advertisements.

The minister said the Punjab government had also announced a relief package for media workers, adding that the government was standing alongside media houses and their employees.

Meanwhile, the minister said the Punjab government was taking administrative decisions, including cluster lockdowns, to save people from coronavirus. So far, some 216 hotspot areas had been sealed in the province.

Published in Dawn, April 13th, 2020