KARACHI:Former President of Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ICCI) Dr. Shahid Rasheed Butt on Thursday said opinion of masses and the business community regarding budget was changing.
“Hike in petroleum prices soon after budget is a mini-budget that will drain masses and the economy. Flour prices are expected to jump by Rs5 per kg after imposition of turnover tax and sales tax which will result in restlessness among masses and it will intensify food security problem,” he said while talking to the traders, according to a statement. He said that the nationwide power crisis had once again exposed the incompetence of power bureaucracy.
Load shedding of this magnitude is not acceptable in a country producing surplus electricity, and it cannot be attributed to anything except mismanagement and unfitness and they deserve punishment, he observed. Butt said that load shedding had inflicted pain on masses across the country which had also provided an opportunity to the officials to benefit from while Islamabad is on the top in this regard.
He said that top power officials were explaining the reasons behind the crisis including maintenance in Tarbela Dam, diversion of 500 megawatts from the national grid to K-Electric, reduced supply to LNG and coal-based power plants but they are silent about the power theft, corruption, and mismanagement.