Naeem asks caretaker govt to focus on holding elections instead of raising utility tariffs

Karachi Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) Emir Hafiz Naeemur Rehman has demanded that the caretaker government focus on timely elections instead of raising tariffs of electricity, gas and petroleum products.

He expressed these views on Friday as he commented on the recent developments in connection with the pricing of utilities. The JI leader said the caretaker regime had gone too beyond its mandate by increasing the tariff of gas by almost 200 per cent.

Rehman lamented that the caretaker government intended to further increase the gas tariff in the month of January. Such type of insensitive approach towards the local industry, as well as domestic consumers, would not only increase the unrest among the people but also cripple the economy, he remarked.

The JI leader said the caretaker government had proved itself a continuation of the past regimes. Instead of keeping itself limited to the day-to-day affairs and focusing on holding the general elections, the caretaker government was strengthening the agenda of the IMF, he alleged.