ISLAMABAD – Another project by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf exposed the ill-planning of the government as the former provincial government spent millions of rupees to peddle social media propaganda.
Over one thousand social media influencers were hired to rekindle the government’s image and to counter fake news and propaganda against it, and a whopping amount of Rs870 million was allocated for the project that was no less than a white elephant; especially in crisis time.
Each social media influencer gets Rs25,000 monthly as salary under an extendable contract but the caretaker setup in the country’s northwestern region has halted all expenditures for the project.
In a notification, Azam Khan led the interim government said influencers have nothing to do with the free and fair polls, equating it with wastages of public money, time, and resources.
Opposition parties in the region also lamented spending of mammoth expenditure on social media influencers, calling it an attempt to spread chaos.
As opposition raised questions, PTI leaders justified the project, saying youth would help the state by creating awareness about polio and other campaigns.
