ISLAMABAD:Prime Minister Imran Khan announced on Monday Rs10 per litre reduction in the prices of petrol and diesel as well as Rs5 per unit cut in the electricity tariff, along with a bonanza of incentives in several areas of the economy.
In a televised address to the nation, the prime minister, while acknowledging the hue and cry made by the opposition parties about the runaway inflation, among other things, said that there would be no increase in the petrol, diesel and electricity charges until the next budget.
Imran’s announcements are seen as clear deviation from the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) bailout package, wherein the government has already agreed to increase tax rates on the petroleum products. The government has consistently increased power tariff since it entered the IMF programme.
Imran’s address to the nation came at a time when the opposition parties have mounted pressure on his government by threatening to send it packing with the no-confidence motion amid speculations that several members of the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) were ready to jump ship.
Though the government would not admit, political pundits believed that the popular measures had been taken to neutralise the opposition parties’ no-confidence move.
In his address, Imran also announced tax exemptions, subsidies, amnesty for industrial sector, stipends, internships and scholarships, while simultaneously making it clear that his government believed in making “independent foreign policy”.
Surprisingly, Imran did not spend much time on the opposition’s flurry of activities and its plan for a no-confidence motion. Admitting high inflation, he only asked the opposition to present a solution, if they had any, instead of just criticising the government and making it a ground for its ouster.
In his speech, he also defended the newly-promulgated amendments to the Pakistan Electronic Crimes Act (PECA), 2016, saying the criticism was unwarranted because the amendments were not aimed at curbing media freedom.
