MARDAN: (Roshan Khan) Pakistan Awami National Party Punjab Provincial General Secretary Ameer Bahadur Khan Hoti visited the Mardan Press Club on Monday and met the newly elected cabinet members and congratulated them on taking over office.
Hoti during the visit congratulated the Press Club President Lutfullah, General Secretary Hidayatullah Hoti and other office bearers for their success. He asserted that journalistic institutions are crucial in enhancing democratic societies and he hoped that the new cabinet would enhance further the professionalism values, reporting unbiasedly and fairly as well as the representation of the current issues by the people.
It is necessary to stress the role of press freedom, and in this regard, Hoti noted that an independent, responsible, and autonomous media is the eyes and ears of the society. He complimented journalists as he carried out their professional responsibilities in difficult conditions and emphasized that they were the one who exposed the truth to the community.
Citing the case of law and order in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, he said that the journalists are seriously challenged by the insecurity, threats by terrorists, political pressure and economic difficulties. He stated that field journalists do not give up and report factual information to the people even when their professions and safety are under threat and claimed their efforts are worthy of praise.
Hoti praised the courage of the journalist fraternity, its integrity and dedication to the service of the people that the pen is mightier than the sword. He ended by promising to maintain complete support of legitimacy of rights of journalists and protection of press freedom in all forums.

