KARACHI, Oct 2: Amid widespread condemnation by political and religious parties, as well as social organizations, of the increase in fuel prices on the eve of Ramazan, transporters have announced a two-day wheel-jam strike starting Tuesday (Oct 4).
The National Transport Ittehad (NTI) has announced that all public transport means –- buses, mini-buses, coaches, trucks, trailers and reti-bajri trucks -– operated by its members would observe a two-day strike, on October 4 and 5, whereas the Karachi Transport Ittehad (KTI) has declared that its members operating buses, mini-buses and coaches would observe a wheel-jam on October 4.
NTI chief Saleem Bangash, demanding a reduction in fuel prices, said his organization would not seek any increase in fares as people could not afford the same. He pointed out that oil prices in the international market had come down from $70 to $65 a barrel but the government, instead of offering any reduction, had resorted to increasing the same repeatedly. He said that rickshaws, taxis, yellow cabs, Suzuki pick-ups, etc., would also remain off the road during the strike.
KTI chief Irshad Bokhari, announcing his organization’s decision to observe a wheel-jam on Tuesday, made it clear that the strike would not be called off unless the recent increase in fuel prices was withdrawn immediately. The Oil Companies’ Advisory Committee, was out to ruin the transport sector, he remarked, and demanded disbanding of the committee.
He pointed out that within the past nine months, the petrol price had been raised by Rs19.37 and that of diesel by Rs13.81. Transport fares, he added, had been increased in May. He offered withdrawal of the fare-hike if the fuel prices were brought down to the level they were in January this year.
He also complained that the government had not yet cleared the dues pertaining to the use of vehicles by its law-enforcement agencies — police, Rangers and army –, as well as election staff, during the local body polls. He demanded that the arrears be paid to transporters immediately.
The Sindh Balochistan Bus Owners Association, supporting the strike call, has announced that the inter-city buses shuttling between Karachi and the Sindh interior would not be operated on October 4.
CONDEMNATION: Pakistan People’s Party, condemning the fresh increase in fuel prices on the eve of the holy month of Ramazan, has said that it is bound to severely affect the middle and poor class.
PPP Senator Raza Rabbani, who is also Leader of the Opposition in the Senate, said that prices of petrol, diesel and kerosene oil had been increased by Rs3.68, Rs2.59 and Rs1.87 respectively on September 30, only one month after almost a similar increase.
He said that due to the increase in fuel prices, those of all essential kitchen items would go up. There would be a snowballing effect of the hike in the price-spiral in the month of Ramazan, he added.
Mr Rabbani said that he had spoken to senators Khurshid Ahmad (MMA), Ishaq Dar (PML-N) and Asfandyar Wali (ANP) on the issue. The opposition members, he said, decided to attend the requisitioned Senate session starting October 7 with black arm-bands to register their protest against the decision. He said that the issue would be raised in the Senate.
PPP MPA Humera Alwani described the increase in POL prices as a ‘cruel step’ by the regime, and said that the move had shocked and dismayed people who were already finding it difficult to manage both ends meet. She deplored that such a decision had been taken on the eve of Ramazan.
MMA legislators Senator Kauser Firdous, MNAs Aisha Munawwar and Samea Raheel, as well as Razia Aziz and Bilqees Saif, have also strongly criticized the government for increasing oil prices and demanded withdrawal of the decision. They said the prices should be reduced, instead, as the oil prices in international market had come down. People should be given the benefit of the downward trend in oil prices, they stressed.
MNAs Abdul Sattar Afghani, Mohammad Hussain Mahenti and Mohammad Laiq Khan of MMA have supported the wheel-jam strike against the increase in fuel prices, and said that masses would fully support transporters in their protest. Observing that the poor masses were already under severe economic pressure, they said transporters should not demand a fare-hike.
They criticized the government for granting substantial raise in salaries and benefits to parliamentarians and cabinet members on the one hand, and “sucking blood of the poor masses on the other. They urged people to wage a decisive struggle against the exploitative regime.
Leaders of Jamaat-i-Islami, Karachi, Dr Mairajul Huda Siddiqui and Ms Anjum Afshan said that the government should have provided relief to people in the month of Ramazan instead of putting on them additional and unnecessary burden of price hike.
They apprehended that the government might now resort to enhancing power and gas tariffs also.
