Pakistan - Petrol crisis

As if the misery brought on by the severe gas and electricity crises was not enough, citizens of the country, and those in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in particular, are now in the grip of a massive petrol shortage, probably of the likes we have never seen before. The state-owned Pakistan State Oil (PSO) has run out of oil because it has not been paid upwards of Rs 200 billion that it is owed, making it limp and unable to purchase the necessary petrol needed to sustain the economy and the everyday workings of the people. This comes in the wake of the global drop in oil prices whereby the amenity-starved public in Pakistan was daring to breathe a sigh of relief. With the unprecedented drop in prices, consumer demand went up, especially after the availability of CNG became little more than a pipedream. But how could the powers that be let that happen? Staying true to its incompetent self, the government turned a deaf ear to the cries and pleas of the higher ups in the PSO demanding payment of dues to clear credit and purchase more fuel. The circular debt issue sees the government refusing to pay the core companies that need to be paid the most and before all other concerns. These folks in power choose to pursue other avenues, other causes to ‘serve’ the public such as the Metro Bus Project and the Yellow Cab Scheme but they do not think about facilitating the people on basic provisions. How can the government justify turning a blind eye to fuel, the very essence of a thriving, working nation? Heads need to start rolling now. How can ministers responsible for this debacle be allowed to continue in this manner when an entire people has to queue for hours on end outside petrol pumps to be given rationed petrol to send their children to school, go to work and transport goods? There will soon be a riot at these pumps — in Lahore only 10 percent are operational — with people’s anger reaching flammable levels. The sheer mismanagement and idiocy of the current regime makes the energy-deprived years of the PPP seem like a term in paradise with people at least obtaining petrol to keep their motors running. The Nawaz Sharif government has employed nothing but ostriches who have buried their heads so far into the sand that they cannot hear the plight of the masses. They need to be unceremoniously sacked and bills need to be paid. There are no two ways about it.