Circular debt

This refers to the editorial ‘Power in debt’ (Mar 07). That the circular debt has touched an unprecedented figure of Rs922 billion is a matter of serious concern. While the incumbent government promised to overcome the energy crisis by 2018, this burgeoning circular debt hints at the failure of the authorities to keep their promise. This also suggests that the loadshedding-free days that were being enjoyed by the people during the last couple of months are coming to an end. The Pakistani people should be ready to bear the brunt of prolonged loadshedding during the excruciating summer. Suffice it to say that the industrial and agricultural sectors will continue to be in decline unless our government takes sufficient steps to resolve the impending energy crisis.

In the past as well, the people faced a great deal of problems due to the shortage of electricity. The current situation does not augur well for the ruling party because the same energy crisis proved to be the main reason behind the PPP losing its vote bank during the 2013 elections. Solving country’s loadshedding problem was the leading slogan of the PML-N during the 2013 election campaign. If this promise is not fulfilled, the party may lose its voters. The need of the hour is that the higher authorities tap on all the available resources to tackle energy-related challenges in an efficient manner.

Muhammad Fayyaz

Mianwali