Newly elected: Political leaders congratulate CPNE office bearers

Hope the council will continue working for journalist values and society.

LAHORE/ KARACHI: Political leaders from leading parties on Sunday congratulated the newly elected office bearers of Council of Pakistan Newspaper Editors (CPNE)

These leaders included Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Patron-in-Chief Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, Sindh Chief Minister  Qaim Ali Shah, Sindh Minister for Information and Local Bodies Sharjeel Inam Memon, Muttahida Qaumi Movement  chief Altaf Hussain, Punjab Chief Minister Shabaz Sharif, Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) leaders Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain and Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi and Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) Secretary-General Liaqat Baloch.

In a statement, Bilawal Bhutto said the print media had its own importance despite the growing influence of electronic media. He said the PPP would continue extending its cooperation to the council.

In their statement, the PML-Q leaders Shujaat Hussain, Pervaiz Elahi and Moonis Elahi hoped the CPNE would promote the philosophy of Jinnah and Iqbal under its elected leadership.

JI Amir for Sindh Dr Merajul Huda Siddiqui, president of Milli Yakjehti Council Sindh Asadullah Bhutto, Mumtaz Hussain Sehto and Secretary Information Mujahid Channa congratulated Mujeebur Rahman Shami, Dr Jabbar Khattak and Ilyas Shakir, and hoped the newly elected members would defend the sanctity of the pen and fight for the freedom of press and for the rights of the journalist community.

JI Secretary-General Liaquat Baloch, Deputy Secretary General Farid Ahmed Paracha, Secretary Information Muhammad Anwer Niazi and Deputy Secretary Information Qaiser Sharif congratulated the office bearers – Mujeebur Rahman Shami, Jabbar Khattak, Ilyas Shakir, Ayaz Khan, Shaheen Qureshi, Owais Khushnud, Tahir Farooq and Siddique Baloch, expressing hope that CPNE would play its key role in promoting higher values and providing solution of the problems faced by journalists.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 2^nd, 2013.