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| July 8, 2005 | Friday | Jumadi-ul-Awwal 30, 1426 |
25pc component of oil prices not linked to world market: senator
ISLAMABAD, July 7: An opposition member of Senate Standing Committee on Petroleum on Thursday said up to 25 per cent component of POL prices was not linked to the international prices. In a press statement, Senator Engineer Rukhsana Zuberi said the prices of oil products in Pakistan were inflated by the refineries, oil marketing and distribution companies.
Different components have been additionally allowed by the government and the regulators by selectively using GOP directives which have inflated the prices from 20 per cent in case of kerosene, light diesel oil and JP-4 and 25 per cent in case of diesel, she said.
Senator Zuberi, who proposed constitution of a sub-committee to understand and analyse the price mechanism, said a glaring evidence had been found that the main cause of undue price inflation was due to the fact that all beneficiaries were regulators of prices.
The government directives with reference to pricing were being applied selectively causing undue increase, she said.
The People’s Party Parliamentarians (PPP) Senator said to add insult to the injury, the 2002 budget had imposed regulatory duty of 11 per cent on diesel and six per cent on kerosene, light diesel and JP 4. Out of this duty, which is still being charged, the government gets only duty on importing any product which is about 40 per cent of diesel consumption in the country. The rest of the products are not imported, she said.
Senator Zuberi said the people of Pakistan had additionally paid over Rs160 billion since General Musharraf took over and the worst part was that the national exchequer did not get any of this amount.
“It is most unfortunate that Pakistan has a prime minister who has no idea of people’s suffering and is using his advisers to spread news based on figments of imagination,” she said.
Commenting on a recent statement of Adviser on Finance Dr Salman Shah, in which he had reportedly said that POL price rise will not affect the country’s economy, Senator Zuberi asked the advisor to go out and see by himself that bus fares were already increased and price of bread had gone up.
The present increase has put an impact of Rs500 to Rs1500 per month on average household budget thus nullifying the increase in salary announced by the government.
She said it had been proved beyond doubt that a rise in petroleum prices was not only due to international price increase but also due to other factors.
To allow the parties, who have vested interests to play, the role of price regulator is in itself contrary to our Constitution and an affront to the international business ethics, she added.
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