ISLAMABAD:Leader of the House in Senate Dr Shahzad Waseem on Friday informed the Senate that the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) government, being fully cognizant of the common man’s problems, was taking both short and long term measures to effectively tackle the confronted issue of inflation.
Responding to concerns of Leader of Opposition Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani and Senator Mushtaq Ahmed over the increased prices of petroleum products and other edibles, he said all parliamentarians knew very well about the upward trend of petroleum prices in the world market.
“It is the most unpleasant decision to take, for any government, to increase the prices of such items. But, there is a rationale behind it which needs to be highlighted to understand [the increase],” he said, sharing facts that the petroleum prices in international market had surged by almost 100 per cent in a short span of time, but the government passed its impact to consumers by just 30 per cent.
Leader of the House said POL prices were determined after calculation of international rate and government levy/taxes. “International prices are not in hands of any government. The rate of per barrel oil has increased from $40 to over $85.”
Dr Shahzad said the entire world was facing the issue of fuel supply chain and surrounded by the inflation mainly due to the coronavirus pandemic. “America is facing the 30-year highest inflation and Europe 13- year.”
He said the government gave maximum subsidies on different items including petroleum products to facilitate the common man, adding it brought down the petroleum level from Rs 15 to Rs 5 and sales tax from 17 per cent to 1.4 per cent per liter. “By this, the government was putting its share of almost Rs 35 in per liter price to put minimum burden on the public.”
Commenting on prices of other edible items, he said there was global inflation due to COVID-19 pandemic. “There are some items that are to be imported like palm oil of which price has increased by 36 per cent from $515 to $1200, similarly coal Liquefied Natural Gas rates have surged.”
He said the government was not oblivious of its responsibility and taking both short and long term measures to tackle the issue of inflation.
Accordingly, Dr Shahzad said Prime Minister Imran Khan announced the country’s biggest-ever relief package of Rs 120 billion to facilitate the people having income less than Rs 31,000 per month, which makes 60 per cent of the whole population.
Besides, he said, the government was advancing the Rs 260 billion Ehsaas programme to mitigate financial sufferings of downtrodden segments of the society, while four million families were being provided the facility of interest-free loans to make them self-reliant.
He recalled that the first ‘inflation storm’ in the country’s history had occurred in 1970 when the Pakistan Peoples’ Party was in government under Zulfikar Ali Bhutto. “At that time, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto in a public meeting had said that what he can do if Arabs have increased the oil prices.”
He said the present government constructed motorways and roads at extremely low price as compared to the past regimes’ rates, and saved billions of rupees public money. “We just spent funds on development of infrastructure, while the past governments made private properties abroad with these funds.”
Upon this, opposition parties started making noise and walked out from the House. Following which, Leader of the House resumed his speech but PPP’s Parliamentary leader Senator Sherry Rehman pointed out the lack of quorum that led to adjournment of the House till Monday 4:30 p.m.
Earlier as per the Orders of the Day, Chairman Functional Committee on Government Assurances Kamil Ali Agha tabled the report on a starred question asked by Senator Syed Muhammad Sabir Shah regarding installation of ATM machines in the National Bank and Muslim Commercial Bank branches in Tehsil Darband, District Mansehra.
Senator Faisal Saleem Rehman, on behalf of Chairman Standing Committee on Finance, Revenue and Economic Affairs, presented the report on the resolution moved by Senator Syed Faisal Ali Subzwari recommending giving special tax exemptions to the small traders and low salaried class of Karachi and Hyderabad.
He, on behalf of the Chairman Standing Committee on Interior, also presented another report on the Bill further to amend the Factories Act, 1934 [The Factories (Amendment) Bill, 2020], introduced by Senator Mohsin Aziz.
Chairman Standing Committee on Interior Mohsin Aziz tabled the report on the Bill further to amend the Anti-Terrorism Act, 1997 [The Anti-terrorism (Amendment) Bill, 2020], introduced by Senator Mushtaq Ahmed.