Days after the internet blackout, Federal Minister for Information Technology and Telecommunications Syed Amin-ul-Haque on Tuesday fired his ministry saying he was “not taken into confidence”.
The mobile internet service was suspended without taking the IT ministry into confidence. After 2017 Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) is not under the Ministry of IT,” Haq told JEE News.
He added that PTA is working as an independent organization.
The federal minister said that blackout of social media websites or internet blocking is not a solution to any problem. He added that using VPN to access blocked sites is not the solution to the problem and people need to be broad-minded.
“Internet can be blocked in certain areas,” the minister suggested as an alternative solution. He further said that the IT sector lost billions of rupees due to blocking of internet services.
The regulatory authority had suspended mobile broadband and restricted access to Twitter, Facebook and YouTube following violent protests in the country after Rangers personnel arrested Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan in Islamabad. He was arrested by the High Court (IHC). On May 9, on the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) warrant.
At least 10 people were killed and dozens injured during the days-long protests.
However, a day ago, the government finally restored the services of social media platforms – Twitter, YouTube and Facebook – across the country after a seven-day suspension.
Internet services were suspended on the recommendations of the interior ministry – the longest continuous shutdown in a country that often suspends communications to contain unrest.
The internet suspension has resulted in a revenue loss of around Rs 820 million for telecom operators, reports suggested, a huge blow to the sector, as the economy is still in a fragile state.
In addition, the government also blocked major social media platforms, including Twitter and Facebook, while YouTube services were used to control misinformation and panic among the public due to the spread of “unwanted information”. was slow for
