AS the PBC pensioners were joining their heads together on Saturday to mourn their unending sufferings due to denial of their legitimate rights and mull what to do to end the callousness on the part of concerned authorities, they received a touching message from a pensioner, Ahmed Mangi from Khairpur, which shuddered all of them. Ahmed Mangi, in his message informed colleagues that his spouse had glands for several months, but he was unable to get her treatment due to financial crisis, especially delay in payment of commutation.
The illness never waits for the arrangement of funds. Her condition deteriorated, Ahmed borrowed money and shifted her spouse to Ziauddin Hospital in Karachi where she was operated upon a couple of days ago. The tale is not confined only to Mr. Ahmed but every PBC pensioner, who retired over the past five years or so, is facing the same tribulation as punishment to serve the national broadcaster, Radio Pakistan, through his life. They are being deprived of every lawful financial benefit, which may help them keep their body and soul together in this age of high inflation. For instance, they have not so far been given increase in pension announced in budget 2024-25 on one pretext or the other. The increase in pension in last fiscal budget was given after passage of four months and arrears of poor, helpless pensioners have been usurped. Similarly, some four hundred and eighty pensioners, who retired over the past five years, have been denied commutation. It causes financial loss of thousands to every pensioner every month because many of them invest this amount in Islamic product of National Saving to enhance their income to meet their needs.
This tale of sufferings of pensioners and callousness of authorities does not end here. Under the government rules medical allowance is given to pensioners enabling them to purchase their daily medicines hassle-free. However, the PBC authorities have constantly been denying this allowance to the pensioners.
To get some respite in their lives, the pensioners of Radio Pakistan have been knocking every door. They recently approached elected representatives, who were sympathetic enough to move an adjournment motion in National Assembly drawing the attention of the government to denial of financial rights to the PBC pensioners. However, the PBC very tactfully evaded the question, moved by Ms. Sofia Saeed Shah, Ms. Nikhat Shakeel Khan, Muhammad Moin Aamir Pirzada and Syed Waseem Hussain, by not touching upon the issues mentioned above and simply confining it to payment of pension which according to them was smooth. Thus the ground realities and sufferings of the pensioners were concealed from the august house.
A PBC pensioners’ delegation also met Parliamentary Secretary for Information, Barrister Daniyal Chaudhry, who promised resolution of these problems. The delegation could not meet Information Minister, Attaullah Tarar, because information ministers have always been too busy in political affairs to focus on problems of the departments under them, especially Radio Pakistan.
Another effort is being made by the dejected pensioners to make their cries heard and pain felt by those at the helms of affairs in the country including President Asif Ali Zardari, Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif and Information Minister Attaullah Tarar by holding protest on Tuesday across the country including PBC Headquarters Islamabad.
—The writer is former Director News, Radio Pakistan.
