Following extensive problems in WhatsApp communications last week, the National Assembly Standing Committee on Information Technology and Telecommunications has asked the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority to explain the disruption.

The issue was raised by committee chairman Syed Aminul Haque, who was told by the Ministry of IT and Telecom officials that the matter would have to be addressed by the PTA, the sector’s regulator.

Committee members said WhatsApp was functioning fine through VPNs, indicating the disturbance was at the local rather than international level.

Mr. Haque further emphasized that the public should be made aware of the downgrading or suspension of services so that the misconceptions prevalent in the country regarding its IT and telecommunication sector could be removed.

The committee resolved to summon the representatives of the PTA in the next meeting for a detailed explanation.

The Ministry of IT and Telecom also briefed the committee regarding the upcoming 5G spectrum auction, due to be held in March 2025. The committee recommended that service providers arrange proper 5G services in major cities after the auction without sacrificing quality.

They called upon the ministry to provide incentives for service providers and make sure that these incentives are utilized for infrastructure improvement so there are no disruptions in 5G services.

The outages, which occurred last Saturday, prevented users from sending or receiving media files using WhatsApp while on 3G or 4G mobile data, though voice messages and video files could be forwarded over Wi-Fi.

Neither PTA nor cellular mobile operators issued any statements at the time. Digital rights experts say this could have been part of the testing for a new system to monitor social media traffic and content.