PTA to restore X as govt nods

Islamabad: In the latest step toward social media regulation, the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) plans to whitelist Virtual Private Network (VPNs), meaning only certain approved VPNs will be accessible in Pakistan.

PTA Chairman Hafeez-ur-Rehman said, they will lift the ban on X (Twitter) as soon as the government gives the go-ahead.

Rehman made his statement during a meeting of the Senate's Standing Committee on the Cabinet Secretariat, which was chaired by Rana Mahmood-ul-Hasan in Islamabad.Top of FormBottom of Form

X has been banned in Pakistan since February 17 due to national security concerns, but it can still be accessed via VPN.

The PTA Chairman stated that the usage of X has significantly declined by 70 percent in Pakistan, even with the availability of VPNs.

He said: “Only 30 percent of the people are using VPNs,” highlighting that the VPNs can be blocked too.

He also told the members that the PTA is whitelisting VPNs after which only selected VPNs could be used.

After the ban was imposed, several petitions were filed with the Sindh High Court (SHC) challenging the restriction on the microblogging site and the suspension of internet services across Pakistan.

Last month, the federal government justified the ban on X, arguing that it was a ‘legitimate’ measure for addressing national security concerns.

The issue was revisited yesterday during a Senate committee meeting, where Senator Abdul Qadir inquired about the telecom regulator's plans for lifting the ban on the website.

“We will remove the ban on X when the government will ask to do so,” said Rehman.

The chairman informed the lawmakers that only seven percent of the complaints received in the last three months were about this platform, and all of them have been addressed. He noted that X has the lowest compliance rate among all social media platforms. 

Rehman further clarified that social media sites are only blocked at the government's request. They also reach out to these platforms regarding any complaints related to violations of Pakistani law. 

Rehman stated that about 56 percent of the people have internet access. 5G auction is likely to be held in March-April 2025, he added.

When asked if the content creators pay taxes from the income through international ads, the chairman said there is no legislation in this regard at this moment.

Social Media Ads

Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar stated that discussions are underway with international social media platforms, including Facebook and Instagram. He highlighted that these platforms are being used for commercial purposes and noted that there is taxation on such activities globally.

Tarar also mentioned that the platforms are considering opening virtual offices in Pakistan due to security issues. Additionally, the cabinet secretary indicated that the topic of social media advertising will be addressed by the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR).  

Installment plan for local mobile phones

He further informed the meeting that local mobile phone manufacturing has commenced, and the availability of installment plans for purchasing phones is expected to boost digitisation efforts.

“Approximately 37 local companies are engaged in mobile phone manufacturing in the country, producing around 20 million phones each year, with 40 percent of these being smartphones,” he reported.

Rehman also mentioned that Pakistan has a 34.50 percent tax rate on telecom customers and noted that there have been no cyberattacks on telecom infrastructure over the past two years.