Kakar convenes meeting
Public and traders’ associations take to the streets in large-scale protests against soaring electricity bills
ISLAMABAD
The countrywide protests sparked by the unprecedented hike in power tariff and the resultant monthly bills received by consumers forced the caretaker government on Saturday to review and calm down the situation, promising to provide maximum relief to them.
It was Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaarul Haq Kakar who personally interacted with the people through a post on X – the social media platform formally known as Twitter – saying that he had convened an emergency meeting at the PM Office on Sunday.
The Power Division and the distribution companies would brief the meeting followed by a detailed discussion on how to give relief to the consumers in their bills, he added.
Pakistani traders and citizens in different cities took to the streets on Saturday against skyrocketing increase in electricity tariffs and overbilling by distribution companies.
According to a statement issued by the Prime Minister office, the Prime Minister also instructed the Ministry of Power and the distribution companies to give a detailed briefing in this regard.
“Consultations will be held in the meeting to provide maximum relief to consumers in their electricity bill,” it added.
It is the International Monetary Fund (IMF) which forced the coalition government to hike the power and gas tariffs as well as the fuel prices despite the fact that the ruling parties were not in favour of the move.
Thus, these IMF conditions may now cause social unrest in Pakistan which is already going through an economic crisis.
A large number of workers of Jamaat-e-Islami and traders held a demonstration outside WASA’s office in Rawalpindi against mind-boggling increase in electricity and water rates.
Speaking on the occasion, representatives of business community complained that the WASA had increased water bills from 300 to 1,500 per cent.
They said in these circumstances it was becoming extremely difficult for them to do business. They shouted slogans against the government and the WASA officials.
Traders in Peshawar came out on roads to vent their anger at the government over hike in the electricity tariff. The protestors blocked the Circular Road and took out a rally. They shouted anti-government slogans and torched their bills.
They demanded the government to withdraw increase in the electricity rates immediately.
Women at Toba Tek Singh lost their temper as they held a demonstration against inflated electricity bills in Bukhshi Park locality. Holding bills in their hands, the protestors said that at a time when they were finding it hard to meet their both ends meet, how they could pay huge sums to the government.
They said they were not even in a position to bring up their kids, and now to rub salt into their wounds, they had been burdened with power bills. The women appealed to the government to take notice of the situation and rid them of their predicament.
A large number of people, including religious scholars, traders and lawyers, held a demonstration at Tala Gang. They demanded the government to provide them relief by reducing the bills.
Similar protests were also reported from Hafizabad, Feroze Watowan and other small cities and towns.
Earlier, the Islamabad Electric Supply Company (Iesco) sought police protection while fearing that the situation might develop into a law and order issue and result in damage to its property as unprecedented hike in power tariff triggered protests in the twin cities of Islamabad and Rawalpindi.
In a letter dated August 25, the Iesco said the staff members were facing a safety issue and requested the Rawalpindi police chief to deploy personnel at the Iesco offices as people in form of groups and mob to register their protest.
The spontaneous series of protests erupted across Pakistan as people started receiving their monthly bills with a huge hike in rate, including the increase in base price and the monthly fuel charged adjustment which meant the duties and fees being collected by the government saw a historic jump, thus propelling the total payable amount to an unbearable for the inflation-hit consumers.
So these taxation measures include the power distribution company’s charges, excise duty, general sales tax and financing cost surcharge along with the TV fee. Barring the TV fee, the amount added to a bill under each head increases with the hiked tariff.
