People were befooled in the name of winter electricity package: Hafiz Naeemur Rehman


LAHORE, Nov 10 (SABAH): Emir Jamaat-e-Islami Pakistan Engineer Hafiz Naeemur Rehman has said that people were befooled in the name of winter package of electricity. He said Shehbaz Sharif’s claims of reducing inflation are lies and his entire government is based on lies and Form 47.

Hafiz Naeemur Rehman expressed these views while addressing a reception hosted in Model Town, Lahore on Sunday. Secretary General Jamaat-e-Islami Ameerul Azim, Information Secretary Qaiser Sharif, Emir Jamaat-e-Islami Punjab Central Javed Kasuri, Emir Jamaat-e-Islami District Lahore Ziauddin Ansari Advocate, Malik Shahid Aslam and Emir District Lahore South Azhar Bilal were also present on this occasion.

Hafiz Naeemur Rehman said the aristocracy does not pay taxes and the blood of the poor and the salaried class is being squeezed, adding Jamaat-e-Islami is a democratic party, no other party in the country is democratic, there are parties under inheritance and one-man show.

Those who do not support Jamaat-e-Islami do not want a neat and clean government to be established in the country, he said and added Jamaat-e-Islami is working for the exaltation of the religion of Almighty Allah. He said that Jamaat-e-Islami’s membership campaign is going on and appealed to the nation to be a part of the movement.

Hafiz Naeemur Rehman said that the government is saying that the inflation has decreased while these people calculate the decrease in inflation in such a way that last November there was an increase of 20 rupees on an item worth 100 rupees, this year an item of 120 rupees has increased by 18 rupees. He said the price of the item has reached from 100 to 138, but according to Shehbaz Sharif, the inflation has decreased, such are the government’s index.

Emir Jamaat-e-Islami questioned, “If inflation is decreasing, why are the prices of industry, trade, electricity and petrol not decreasing? Why are people worried? Thousands of billions of rupees are being given to IPPs in the form of capacity charges.” He said that Jamaat-e-Islami staged a sit-in against inflation, expensive electricity, targeted IPPs, and is constantly following up while yesterday the government announced a winter package to befool the people.

He said the government is claiming that it has made electricity cheaper, last year in November or December, the consumer spent five hundred units, in December this year, if the consumer consumes six hundred units, the government will charge six rupees per unit on the above hundred units while the remaining five hundred units will have the same rate charges.

He revealed that the formula for domestic consumers was made that if 25% extra electricity is spent, the tariff will remain the same while indeed the rulers are befooling the people. He furthered that prices of petroleum products decreased in the international market while these prices were increased in Pakistan.

He suggested the government to reduce the price of petrol by at least 100 rupees per litre. He said economy cannot recover without reduction in electricity tariff and petrol price, adding Rs 60 per litre levy is cruel. He clarified that the protest will continue until the IPPs agreements are over. He added that quality education is not available in the country for 77 years.

Hafiz Naeemur Rehman said that before starting the sit-in, the people will remember that the energy minister used to say that they cannot talk to the IPPs. He said when sit-in was continued they also signed an agreement with us and closed five IPPs while all IPPs should be closed. Fauji Foundation should also be talked to in this regard as not only the people but generals also should sacrifice, he added.