Tag: social media platforms

  • Telecom operators, govt suffer major revenue losses due to mobile internet shutdown

    Telecom operators, govt suffer major revenue losses due to mobile internet shutdown

    According to reliable sources, the suspension of mobile broadband services has had a devastating impact on the economy in Pakistan. Telecom operators have incurred a revenue loss of approximately Rs820 million, while the government has lost around Rs287 million in tax revenue.

    The suspension has also caused significant losses for digital app users, such as Careem, InDrive, and FoodPanda, as well as brought digital payments to a halt. The situation has caused widespread inconvenience and hardship for the general public, necessitating the immediate attention of the relevant authorities to resume data services.

    Furthermore, social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter remained partially or fully suspended on the second day. Jazz CEO, Aamir Ibrahim, expressed his dissatisfaction through a tweet, emphasising that shutting down the internet is not a solution to any problem, but instead, it creates more problems than it solves. He stated that the impact on the economy is quantifiable, but the inconvenience to the people is incalculable.

    According to Brecorder, Muhammad Zohaib Khan, the Chairman of Pakistan Software Houses Association (P@SHA), strongly criticised the indiscriminate blockage of internet services in Pakistan due to the emergent political situation. He condemned the mindless and consultation-less decision and highlighted that the IT industry has come to a standstill since Tuesday evening.

  • Govt employees forbidden to use social media platforms

    Govt employees forbidden to use social media platforms

    In an apparent bid to prevent the leak of official information and documents, the government has barred all government employees from using social media platforms, reports Kalbe Ali for Dawn.

    A notification issued by the Establishment Division on August 25 says no government servant can participate in any media platform without the permission of the government.

    The notification gave detailed instructions to government employees under Government Servants (Conduct) Rules, 1964, governing the participation of government servants in different media forums including social media platforms for compliance.

    Screenshot of the notification available to The Current

    “Rule 18 of the Rules bars a government servant from sharing official information or document with a government servant or a private person or press,” the notification added.

    “Referring to Rule 22 of the Servant Rules, the Establishment Division says that it restrains a government servant from making any statement of fact or opinion which is capable of embarrassing the government in any document published or in any communication made to the press or in any public utterance or television programme or radio broadcast delivered by him or her,” read the notification.

    The notification warned all government servants that violation of one or more of these instructions would be tantamount to misconduct and lead to disciplinary action against the delinquent government servant under Civil Servants (Efficiency and Discipline) Rules, 2020. Besides, it said, disciplinary proceedings would also be held against the serving government servants in case they were administrators of a social media group where any violation had been committed.

    “They (government employees), while using different social media platforms including Facebook, Twitter, WhatsApp, Instagram, Microblogging, etc, to air their views on a host of subjects and sometimes indulge in actions or behaviour that does not conform to the required standards of official conduct, as envisaged in the Rules,” the notification added.