NA panel issues summons: CEOs face scrutiny over poor telecom services

ISLAMABAD: The National Assembly Standing Committee on Information Technology and Telecommunication on Thursday expressed serious concern over poor mobile phone services across the country and decided to summon the chief executives of Jazz, Zong and Ufone in its next meeting to explain persistent service quality issues. The committee also decided to summon NEPRA officials over the regulator’s refusal to recognise the telecom sector as an industry despite its status under the Finance Act, 2021, a move members said could help resolve electricity supply and load-shedding problems affecting telecom towers. The committee, which met under the chairmanship of Syed Amin-ul-Haque, directed the Ministry of IT and Telecommunication and the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) to play an effective role in improving mobile services and resolving infrastructure-related bottlenecks. Briefing the committee on the quality of internet and telecom services, PTA said it regularly conducted Quality of Service (QoS) surveys to monitor the performance of operators. The authority said survey findings were shared with the concerned operators, who were given 30 days to rectify deficiencies. After the stipulated period, PTA conducts a re-survey and, if deficiencies persist, issues a show-cause notice and imposes a fine under the applicable rules and regulations. PTA informed the committee that penalties of up to Rs350 million could be imposed on telecom operators. However, the authority pointed out that operators in several cases approached courts instead of paying the imposed fines, resulting in prolonged legal proceedings and delaying corrective action. The committee expressed concern over the situation and directed PTA to submit at its next meeting complete details of all show-cause notices issued and fines imposed during the last six months. It also sought a breakdown of fines recovered so far and the amount still outstanding. The committee further decided to invite representatives of all relevant telecom operators to its next meeting to directly brief members on measures being taken to improve internet services, upgrade existing infrastructure and establish new telecom infrastructure. Members stressed that telecom companies should provide concrete information on the practical measures being taken to improve service quality rather than merely relying on technical explanations. The committee also examined the impact of electricity shortages and load-shedding on telecom infrastructure. Member Telecom informed the committee that the telecom sector had been accorded the status of an industry under the Finance Act, 2021. However, Nepra has declined to recognise telecom operators as an industry, reportedly on the grounds that they do not meet the required value-addition criteria. The committee took serious note of the issue and directed Member Telecom to prepare a comprehensive working paper covering its legal, financial and technical aspects. Nepra officials will be summoned at the next meeting to explain the regulator’s position and deliberate on measures for resolving the issue. The committee observed that recognition of telecom as an industry could have significant implications for electricity tariffs and supply arrangements. Members noted that load-shedding at telecom towers can result in shutdown of network sites, disrupting mobile and internet connectivity and affecting consumers, businesses and people dependent on digital services. The committee emphasised that uninterrupted power supply to telecom infrastructure was essential for reliable connectivity and directed the Ministry of IT to pursue practical solutions to the issue. The committee also considered the Electronic Transactions (Amendment) Bill, 2026, but deferred further consideration until its next meeting. PPP members expressed reservations over the proposed amendments, stating that the bill had not yet been discussed with the party’s Parliamentary Legislative Committee. They maintained that the legislation was still at the consultation stage. The committee was directed to complete the required consultations before the bill is taken up again. Copyright Business Recorder, 2026

Read full story on Business Recorder