In a bid to pull the ailing Radio Pakistan out of a deep financial crunch, a National Assembly Standing Committee has approved the recommendation by the Pakistan Broadcasting Corporation (PBC) to collect 2 percent tax on every recharge from cellular phone users and a one-time fee on the purchase of new vehicles.
The users cannot be forced to pay for the services they do not want to listen to. Instead of improving the quality of its programmes, Pakistan Broadcasting Corporation is trying to fleece the public through this outrageous proposal.
More importantly, throughout the world the revenue for these services comes from the advertisements, while the listeners are offered these facilities free of charge. If this proposal is accepted, other radio channel operators will also stand entitled to similar amounts, thus unnecessarily opening a Pandora box.
In all fairness, the National Assembly Standing Committee should not be wasting the taxpayers’ money on discussing useless issues.
DR IRFAN ZAFAR,
Islamabad, February 27.