Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) Emir Hafiz Naeem-ur-Rehman. Photo file
Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) Emir Hafiz Naeemur Rehman on Tuesday announced nationwide protests on July 10 against the petroleum tax, rising fuel prices, inflation and what he called the government’s ineffective economic policies.
Addressing a press conference in Lahore, Rehman said the demonstrations would continue until the government provided meaningful relief to the public. JI Deputy Emir Liaqat Baloch, JI Central Punjab Emir Muhammad Javed Kasuri and Lahore Emir Ziauddin Ansari flanked Rehman during the pressure.
Lamenting the government’s overall handling of the power sector, the JI chief claimed that though the official price of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) was fixed at Rs241 per kilogram, it was being sold in the market at around Rs500/kg. He added that prolonged gas leakage and high LPG prices were an additional burden on consumers.
“Affordable gas is critical to economic growth,” he stressed.
Referring to the government’s recent cut in petrol prices, the JI leader called the reduction of Rs1.97 per liter “inadequate”.
He also described the Rs118-per-litre in compound taxes and duties on petrol collected by the authorities as “extortion” and claimed that the government collected about Rs8.5 trillion which was used to meet tax collection targets instead of improving energy supply infrastructure.
Rehman urged the public to stand up against what he described as an unfair system, arguing that the retail price of petrol should not exceed Rs 225 per litre. He made a special appeal to the young people to participate in Friday’s nationwide protests.
The JI chief also challenged the levy of climate support tax on petroleum products and asked where, according to him, approximately Rs.60 billion collected under the tax had been spent.
He highlighted that the oil tax disproportionately hit low-income and middle-class citizens, including workers, students and motorcycle users, while influential landowners continued to evade taxation. Demanding an immediate abolition of the tax, he reiterated that petrol prices should not exceed Rs 225 per litre.
The JI chief further claimed that the government lacked a clear economic strategy and had failed to exploit the country’s natural resources “effectively”, while citing the sub-optimal use of oil and mineral reserves as an example.
Criticizing the delay in the Pakistan-Iran gas pipeline project, he urged the government to restore trade with the neighboring country to help meet Pakistan’s energy needs, claiming that Iran had already completed its share of the work.
Commenting on the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR), Rehman claimed that the department was plagued with corruption amounting to trillions of rupees and this burden of inefficiency was passed on to the public.
Food and Agriculture
While talking about other issues of daily inconvenience, the JI leader said that the price of naan was also inconsistent in different parts of the city. He added that wheat was bought from farmers at Rs3,500 per quintal. mulch, while flour was sold at around Rs5,600 per soil. The high cost of naan paid by consumers did not benefit the farmers at all.
Sugar mills owned by politically influential groups had withheld Rs 1.5 billion from sugarcane growers, Rehman further alleged.
He also rejected the government’s decision to export sugar, arguing that it would lead to higher sugar prices.
“Pakistan’s cotton cultivation has also fallen to historic lows,” he lamented.
Rehman directly blamed the government for the deterioration of the agriculture sector and insisted that billions of rupees were being spent on publicity campaigns instead of addressing public issues.
Education, transport and welfare projects
On education, the JI emir condemned the Punjab government’s decision to outsource 11,000 government schools. He said that provision of free, high-quality education was the constitutional responsibility of the government and argued that education should be treated as Pakistan’s top national priority.
“More than 10 million children in Punjab are out of school and universities do not receive adequate subsidies,” he stressed during the press briefing.
The JI leader also asked the government to build an underground railway system in Lahore to improve city transport.
Commenting on the government’s social welfare policies, he said Benazir’s income support program had become “a source of corruption”. He questioned why the government chose to spend hundreds of billions of rupees on welfare programs and not on information technology and vocational training infrastructure to enable young people to secure sustainable employment.
Political overview
Discussing the political situation in Azad Jammu and Kashmir, he stressed the need for dialogue.
“Several prime ministers have left office since the election, resulting in political instability,” he explained.
Discussing local government politics in Karachi, he claimed that JI’s electoral mandate for the mayor’s office was being ignored, adding that repeated replacements of elected representatives led to public unrest.
Recalling last year’s war with India, Rehman said: “Pakistan gained international glory while India suffered in embarrassment.”
The JI emir urged the government to strongly raise the issue of Indus river rights before the international community.
Concluding the press conference, the JI chief urged the citizens to join the nationwide protests on Friday to force the government to initiate relief measures.
