Taking serious notice of the fuel shortage within the country despite the fact that oil prices dropped by 60 per cent in the world, Rawalpindi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (RCCI) President Syed Asad Mashadi said that present government has failed in facilitating the business community and has created even more troubles for common man.
While exchanging these views with the traders and industrialists in a meeting held at the chamber on Wednesday, the RCCI president said that the petrol crisis is a national security issue boiling down to gross government incompetence and mismanagement.
Senior Vice President Mian Humayun Parvez, Vice President Saboor Malik, member executive committee and other members of the chambers were also present on the occasion.
Mashadi said that the Pakistani consumer is already paying extra prices for petrol purchase as compared to the international market, still there is a shortfall. Initially, the government has not dropped the price of petrol proportionately to the drop of crude oil price in the international market leading to create severe doubts in their intentions. There is an excess supply of oil in the international market whereas Pakistan is surprisingly suffering from an acute shortage.
He said that Petroleum Ministry’s excuse that demand rose by 25 per cent in January and caused this shortage is totally a lame excuse and has no grounds as even a layman knows that CNG will not be provided in winters and petrol prices are falling so there will be an increase in demand. It was the task of ministry to speculate the demand, order and stock the required amount in its reserves. In particular when the senior official and management in PSO were stating these shortages and asking bailout since April 2014.
Mashadi said that devastating fuel shortage has immobilized parts of Punjab and merely the orders of making officials responsible are not sufficient rather it’s an act of face saving. What to expect the promises of progressing Pakistan where emergency healthcare service, public transporters, ambulances and buses are idle. He also clearly mentioned that an expected rise on oil imports and shortage of electricity will create a historical trade deficit as more power plants are likely to suspend working in a few days because they are running out of furnace oil.
After bringing in international distrust, increased terrorist attack, rising unemployment, mounting corruption Trade and Industry is going to collapse due to the negligence on the part of government.