Rejecting the allegations of secret funds, Information Minister Qamar Zaman Kaira on Friday said a specific impression was being created against the ministry through a propaganda campaign.
Talking to PTV from Barcelona, Kaira said the propaganda campaign was started by the leader of opposition in the National Assembly and now this impression was being reflected in the media. He said the total budget of the ministry, as shown in the budget document, was Rs 5.58 billion, of which Rs 3.4 billion was allocated for Radio Pakistan as it was not an earning organization. Kaira said Rs 250 million were earmarked for Pakistan Television.
“We have a number of organizations, including the Directorate of Film Publication (DFP), the Press Council of Pakistan (PCP) and the Press Information Department (PID) while Rs 530 million are allocated for press attaches abroad,” he added. About the secret fund, Kaira clarified that Rs 100 million were reserved for special publicity fund while a small amount of Rs 12 million was kept under the head of secret fund. “This amount is meant for the treatment of the ailing journalists and their family members, or their local and foreign tours,” he added. He said newspersons of various countries were invited to visit Pakistan and they were looked after from this budgetary allocation. The minister said press clubs located in various parts of the country were also supported from this fund. He, however, said allegations of secret fund of Rs 4 billion or more were totally false, fabricated and baseless. The minister requested the Supreme Court and the honourable judges to thoroughly probe this baseless allegation.
He assured all relevant record would be produced before the court. “It is the responsibility of the court to take a stern action against those who tried to use the judiciary and spread misperception,” he added.
Kaira rejects allegations of secret funds
