PTV paid millions to anchors without contracts, audit finds

ISLAMABAD — Pakistan’s federal auditors have identified alleged financial and procedural irregularities in the hiring and payment of television anchors at the state-run broadcaster Pakistan Television, raising fresh questions about transparency and internal controls at the public-funded network.

The findings are contained in the Audit Report 2024-25, and were highlighted by journalist Saddia Mazhar in her YouTube vlog ‘Saadia Mazhar Reports,’ where she said repeated Right to Information requests about anchor appointments earlier received no substantive response from authorities.
he auditors examined transactions and recruitment practices at Pakistan Television Corporation (PTVC) and flagged instances of anchor appointments made without formal contracts, open auditions, or documented performance evaluations, and quantified financial implications running into tens of millions of rupees.

Selection on pick and choose basis
According to Para No. 40 of the audit report, titled “Selection of anchors on pick and choose basis and payments without contracts,” PTVC incurred a reported loss of Rs. 84.729 million. The audit states that 11 anchors were hired without formal contracts and were selected without open competition or documented scrutiny. It further notes that factors such as past performance, viewership demand, public impact, and income generation were not evaluated before their appointments, and no legal agreements were executed in these cases.

The anchors named in the report include Umar Aslam (paid Rs51 lac since 2022), Syed Imran Shafqat (Rs89 lac), Faheem Gohar Butt, Komal Saleem (hired in 2024, paid more than Rs48 lac), Rizwan ur Rehman (over Rs87 lac), Amin Hafeez (hired in 2024, paid over Rs87 lac), Najam Wali Khan and Beenish Saleem (over Rs1 crore and Rs16 lac respectively), Asim Naseer (Rs54 lac), Wajhat Masood (over Rs89 lac since 2023), and Hasan Iftikhar (appointed in 2024, paid over Rs30 lac). The report states these payments were made without executed contracts or documented performance criteria.

Excess payments flagged in Lahore case
In Para No. 59, auditors pointed to excess payments amounting to Rs2.92 million in the case of a current affairs anchor in Lahore. The report states that Ms. Maria Zulfiqar Khan was contracted from September 2024 to August 2025 to host 20 shows per month, ten for PTV News and as many for PTV World, between January and April 2025.

However, the audit found that she conducted 40 shows instead of the agreed 80 during the specified period. Despite the shortfall, she was reportedly paid the full contractual amount without deductions, resulting in what auditors described as an excess payment of Rs2.92 million.

Payments without program limits
The audit further observed that Rs37.68 million was paid to eight news anchors without clearly defined program limits or performance benchmarks. According to the report, PTVC management did not provide supporting documentation or measurable criteria when requested during the audit process.

The eight anchors identified in this category are Natasha Naseer (Rs450,000 per month), Mohammad Imran Khan (Rs400,000 per month), Ahmad Nawaz (Rs280,000 per month), Mohammad Hammad Hasan (Rs250,000 per month), Kashan Akmal (Rs350,000 per month), Rashid Yaqoob (Rs400,000 per month), Yasir Rehman (Rs550,000 per month), and Dr. Sajjad Bukhari (Rs460,000 per month).
Source :JP