JAMAAT-e-Islami (JI) Pakistan Emir Hafiz Naeemur Rehman on Sunday stepped up pressure over the petroleum levy, announcing a nationwide shutter-down strike after 12th Rabi ul Awal as the party’s sit-ins entered their eighth day. Addressing a press conference in Lahore, Hafiz Naeem said the party’s campaign was progressing “in the best possible manner” and demanded that the federal government reduce petroleum product prices. He said the country could not progress in the presence of flour and sugar mafias, while farmers were also struggling to obtain fertilizer at affordable prices.
The JI is championing the cause of the people as there is nation-wide anger and frustration over unending moves that trigger inflation and make lives of the people miserable. As the parliament, which represents the will of the masses, seems to be irrelevant to the plight of the inflation-ridden people, the JI deserves credit for highlighting the genuine problems of the people. It is, however, regrettable that the Government is not paying due attention to the legitimate protest and instead it continues with its policy of revising prices of petroleum products upwards on an almost daily basis. In fact, the daily change in oil prices is being used as a cover to hoodwink people about severity of the issue and this confirmed from an aggregate increase of about Rs 15 a litre in the past three upward revisions in the prices of petrol and diesel. The Government is moving slowly on its pledges to take measures to reduce prices of petroleum products meaningfully despite the fact that prices of these products have not abnormally increased in other regional countries. Like capacity payments to IPPs, the petroleum levy has become a major factor in pushing prices of oil to unacceptable limits and the Government will have to review its anti-consumer strategy.
