Allhumdolillah! I am at a much better place since my last post with series of lab tests, utlrasounds, a mammogram and some other really scary tests, and a gut wrenching anxiety of results. I am doing well thankfully everything was clear except low iron levels with vitamin d3 deficiency. These deficiencies are now on their way to recovery. It is worth noting that I have been struggling with intense brain and physical fatigue since 2019 but not a single doctor was able to identify my problem. Once somebody is diagnosed with depression or anxiety then every health issue they complain about is looked from the psychological lenses. Nobody asked me to check iron, vitamin b12 or vitamin d3 deficiencies even my mum who is a dermatologist always assured me that I am fine and this weakness is just a phase. It was a phase alright, it engulfed almost 8 years of my life pushed back my career and research ambitions. This is not the case alone with me but there are many people who silentl...
While we were all mourning the petrol price hikes and drowning in the chaos of inflation, IT Minister Shaza Fatima Khawaja quietly tabled the Pakistan Telecommunication (Re-organisation) (Amendment) Bill 2026. Most of us didn't even notice.
The bill amended the 1996 Pakistan Telecommunication
(Re-Organization) Act. It redefined certain terms and replaced Section 27A on
Right of Way with a new Section 27B. What sounds like routine legislative work
is anything but ordinary.
This bill grants state-backed authorization to telecom
companies to take over any private property or land and install 5G
infrastructure including mobile towers and fiber-optic networks wherever they
please. No consent required. No negotiation. Just entry and installation.
The astonishing reality is that this draconian bill which
grossly violates the fundamental rights of Pakistanis was approved by majority
vote in the National Assembly on June 11, 2026. Not a single member objected.
Nobody raised their voice against these dangerous insertions. It appears nobody
bothered to read it or if they did they chose to remain silent.
When the bill reached the Senate Standing Committee on IT,
some members finally raised concerns. Journalists who examined the provisions
uncovered a massive corruption scandal behind it. But the bill remains alive
and awaits approval from the upper house.
Consider what this means for ordinary citizens. Any telecom
company could appear at your doorstep or simply force entry onto your private
property to install a high magnetic powered tower wherever they choose. If you
resist or refuse to cooperate you could be fined up to Rs 50 million. Fifty
million rupees for protecting your own home.
The original 1996 Act granted the right to "pass over
land or property of other person to provide telecom license services." The
2026 Bill fundamentally changes this by giving licensees the right to
"enter upon, use, or pass over land, premises, or property, whether public
or private, for the installation, deployment, operation, or maintenance of
telecommunication systems." Enter and use. Not simply pass over. This is a
dramatic and dangerous expansion of state power.
Under the new process the telecom licensee requests approval
from the owner or tenant. If there is no response within 15 days they send a
mandatory reminder. And then what? The bill does not clearly protect citizens
from forced entry after that point.
The justification being offered is the upcoming 5G spectrum
launch. Instead of careful planning and appropriate infrastructure on remote or
unowned areas the government has chosen a shortcut. Just take over any home or
property of their liking and install whatever they need. Nobody seems concerned
about the severe health hazards caused by heavy radiation from these towers.
Nobody seems concerned about your rights.
I honestly do not know what we Pakistanis are doing anymore.
Our freedoms and fundamental rights are being attacked silently every day and
no one steps up to fight. How many wake-up calls do we need before we realize
that no angels are coming from the heavens to protect people who willingly
sleep on their rights?
There must be a limit to this insatiable greed for ownership
without any State protection for its citizens. Until those in power listen and
value the people we have no choice but to speak up relentlessly. Write.
Discuss. Share. Make noise.
Because if we do not speak now we may not have anything left
to speak for.
What are your thoughts on this bill? Share this post so
more Pakistanis know what is slipping through the cracks.
Sonya Syed (Post 597).
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