ISLAMABAD – Geo TV management was exposed before the Supreme Court byrenowned journalist Hamid Mir, who admitted that the channel was not payingsalaries to its staff.
During the hearing of a suo motu case on Wednesday regarding the nonpaymentof staff salaries by media house owners, Hamid Mir blew the lid off Geo andconfirmed that the newsmen associated with the channel did not receivetheir salaries for the month of February and March.
A three-judge bench, headed by Chief Justice of Pakistan Mian Saqib Nisarand comprising Justice Aijaz ul Ahsan and Justice Umer Atta Bandialconducted the hearing of the case and ordered the management of Geo to payall pending salaries to its employees by April 30.
The bench visibly seemed perturbed over the issue and ordered the mediahouse to pay the salaries even if it has to “beg or borrow”.
Not only that, the court also clarified it will shut down TV channels whereowners do not pay their staff, remarking that employees are the backbone ofany organisation.
Besides the anchor of ‘Caital Talk’, two Geo News reporters told the benchthat their salaries for the last two months are pending upon which thebench summoned Jang Group HR Director Salar Janjua, who accepted the delay.
Janjua, however, assured the bench that the management had started payingsalaries and it is expected that all staff salaries will be cleared soon.
Despite assurance, the bench sought an affidavit from the Geo CEO with anundertaking that staff salaries will be paid by April 30.