Parliamentary committee recommends Ambreen Jan as PEMRA chairperson

ISLAMABAD: The parliamentary committee has approved Ambreen Jan, former Federal Secretary of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, as the Chairperson of the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA).

The decision was made by a parliamentary committee chaired by Shehbaz Babar, which met to select the new PEMRA chairperson. The committee reviewed and scrutinised five shortlisted candidates for the post.

The shortlisted candidates included Brigadier (retd) Anwar Ahmed, Mateen Haider, Irfan Ashraf, Ambreen Jan, and Dr Hamid Khan.

After reviewing all candidates, the committee unanimously approved Ambreen Jan’s appointment as PEMRA chairperson. Her name has been forwarded to the Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif for final approval.

She has previously served as Secretary of Information. Meanwhile, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI’s) Senator Ali Zafar did not attend the committee meeting due to the boycott of parliamentary committees.

Established in 2002, PEMRA is an independent federal institution responsible for regulating and issuing channel licenses for the establishment of the mass media culture, print and electronic media.

It is responsible for facilitating and regulating the operation of all broadcast media and distribution services in Pakistan.