Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) Emir Hafiz Naeemur Rehman on Tuesday announced the party will protest nationwide on July 10 (Friday) against the petroleum levy, rising fuel prices, inflation, and the “government’s ineffective” economic policies.
Addressing a press conference in Lahore, he said the demonstrations would continue until the government provided meaningful relief to the public.
Criticizing the government’s energy sector policies, he alleged that liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) was selling in the market for Rs. 500/kg despite a fixed rate of Rs. 241/kg. Coupled with prolonged gas load-shedding, he said, high LPG prices are posing additional burdens on consumers. “Affordable gas is vital for economic growth,” he maintained.
Referring to the government’s Rs. 1.97/liter reduction to petrol prices last week, the JI chief this was “inadequate.” He described the Rs. 118/liter imposed on consumers in the form of taxes and levies as “extortion,” claiming the government had collected around Rs. 8.5 trillion through such measures. Rather than using these funds to improve energy supply infrastructure, he said, the government used them to meet tax collection targets. He further questioned where the government had spent the Rs. 60 billion collected under the climate support levy.
Rehman called on the public to rise up against the “unjust” system, maintaining the price of petrol should not exceed Rs. 225/liter. He specifically urged the youth to mass in large numbers this Friday.
Emphasizing that the petroleum levy disproportionately affected low-income and middle-class citizens, he regretted that influential landowners continued to dodge taxation. He demanded an immediate end to the levy, reiterating global trends indicated the maximum price of petrol should not exceed Rs. 225/liter.