The impact of recent decrease of petroleum products prices in Pakistan could not pass on to the people. Though the price of the petrol was cut down by Rs 12 per liter, the people are not happy with the reduction.
The transporters either plying on intercity routes or within the city did not reduce the fare of the transport throughout the country, by which the common man could not benefit from this reduction. On the other hand, when the price of petroleum was increased in the past, the transporters raised per passenger fare within no time. But after one almost 10 days of the decrease in the price of petroleum, the transporters mafia is unmoved to transfer the benefit of reduction to the people.
If we look at the track record of the current government, one thing is noticed that when it increases the price of petroleum prices by Rs 40 to 70 each time in the past one year, but if it decreases, the amount is very less as compared to the hike which is considered a peanut in the elephant’s mouth.
There was a common perception, before the PDM government came into power that the sitting Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif was a good administrator, but after becoming PM, the people knew his reality that it was a wrong perception. As a matter of fact, he is the Prime Minister, who has not written anything on anybody. During his tenure, the people are left at the mercy of the different mafias, who are sucking the blood of the people freely and there is no one to prevent them. It is quite obvious that the transport mafia is also part and parcel of these mafias, which are not ready to reduce the fare on decrease of petroleum prices.
The writ of the government is so feeble, when so -called “good administrator” is in PM’s office that when the price of petroleum prices was reduced the Finance Minister Ishaq Dar’s statement was run by the media in he made a request to the transport mafia to decrease the fares. The government is so weak that instead of issuing orders, it is forced to beg in front of mafias. The function of the government is issuing orders and not making requests and if its order is not implemented then it should be dealt with iron hands.
It is also a fact that the government is earning Rs 95 on one liter that is sold on petrol pumps. In spite of this, the government is not ready to reduce its margin of profit and put the entire burden on the people. The government always hoodwinks the people by telling a big lie that it is taking hard decisions. But as a matter of fact, transferring the entire burden on the already inflation-hit nation and increasing the price is a very easy and soft decision for any government. The hard decision is to reduce the size of the cabinet, to control the expenditures by not purchasing latest model vehicles every year for the ministers and to cancel the free of cost provision of patrol, electricity and natural gas to the members of the parliaments.
The common man, working and salaried class of the country are waiting for the actual hard decision taken by the government to give some big relief for them.