LAHORE:
The main leader of PML-N and former Federal Minister, Khawaja Saad Rafique, demanded the elimination of the prohibition of X (previously Twitter), which has been in force for a year.
In a statement on the platform on Saturday, Rafique said that despite the ban, users continue to access the platform through VPN, which makes the restriction ineffective.
“The prohibition of X has not fulfilled any purpose during the past year. Everyone still uses it through VPN, so it should now be raised,” he said.
It is noteworthy that the platform was blocked in Pakistan shortly after last year’s general elections. However, users have continued to overlook restrictions using VPN services.
According to reports, X has approximately 4.5 million users in the country, many of whom remain active despite the official prohibition.
Meanwhile, the Government has not indicated that there are no signs of reversing its decision with reports that say that officials have suggested that the return of the platform was not on the cards in the short term.
Ironically, while the public remains blocked, government departments continue to use X for official ads, probably through VPN.
The platform, with around 4.5 million users in Pakistan, was blocked in February 2024, shortly after the general elections, during the caregiver’s government mandate.
The last nail in the coffin was a press conference of former Rawalpindi Commissioner Liaquat Chattha, who accused the Sikandar Electoral Commissioner Sikandar Sultan Raja and a former president of the Supreme Court of Electoral Fraud of Engineering.
A year later, the prohibition remains firmly, without indications of a policy change as users continue to complain about the lack of access to the popular social media platform.
