ISLAMABAD – Despite resistance from his economic managers and cabinet ministers, Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani on Thursday decided to revert the recently-announced increase in petrol prices, calling it a political decision.
A source who attended the prime minister’s meeting with parliamentary party heads told Pakistan Today that Federal Finance Minister Abdul Hafeez Shaikh in his one-hour long briefing to participants defended the hike in POL prices, saying it was almost impossible to revert them.
“He told the committee that the government will have to face a monthly loss of Rs 5 billion by withdrawing the increase in the POL prices. Shaikh cited the government’s agreements with the World Bank and the IMF and said due to its financial constraints the government was unable to reverse the POL prices,” the source said.
He said Petroleum Minister Naveed Qamar and Information Minister Qamar Zaman Kaira supported Shaikh while the minister of state for economic affairs, Hina Rabbani Khar remained silent during the entire meeting. “Qamar said if the government reversed its decision, OGRA, being an independent body, will demand subsidy from the government,” said the source.
“On the federal ministers’ resistance, the PML-N proposed that the government should check tax evasion and introduce reforms in the FBR to meet the financial needs. All parties fully supported the PML-N and emphasised that the government should check corruption in its tax collection machinery,” the source said.
The source said Minister for Religious Affairs Khurshid Shah suggested that a committee, comprising members from all parliamentary parties, should be formed to devise a petrol pricing mechanism.
“Shah said just like the parliamentary committee on constitutional reforms, the decision of the proposed committee on POL pricing should be final and mandatory on the government and in that case all political parties would have to face the heat of possible hike in POL prices in future,” the source said, adding that all parliamentary party heads endorsed his proposal.
According to the source, Gilani also agreed with Shah’s proposal for the formation of parliamentary committee to formulate POL pricing mechanism.
“The prime minister said until the formulation of a new mechanism, the government will withdraw the notification of the hike in POL prices as a political decision,” the source added.
