Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. PHOTO: PID
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif had promised to take action against those responsible for the gruelling petrol crisis, no matter how high or mighty. But that didn’t happen – perhaps because three ‘heavyweights’ of the ruling party apparently shared the blame for what consumers have been suffering for over a week now.
The prime minister chaired two meetings on Monday to discuss what led to the petrol shortage and who was responsible. Nawaz Sharif expressed his displeasure over the fuel shortage which is now snowballing into a nationwide crisis. However, he didn’t take action against three of his senior cabinet ministers responsible for the situation.
According to an official handout, the petroleum situation in the country was reviewed at the meetings attended by Finance Minister Ishaq Dar, Petroleum Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif, Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif and senior bureaucrats.
The prime minister was informed that measures were being taken to provide immediate relief to consumers as 15,600 tons of petrol was supplied to gasoline stations across the country on Monday against an average daily consumption of 12,000 tons. Additional supply of petrol would be ensured next month.
Sources told The Express Tribune that the prime minister’s team of bureaucrats said that three federal ministers, Dar, Asif and Abbasi, shared the responsibility for the crisis. The bureaucrats said these ministers, who rarely interact with each other, didn’t coordinate to overcome either the energy crisis or petrol shortage. Sources said all of these ministers were close confidante of the prime minister.
Sources said that although the prime minister was displeased with the three ministers, he didn’t take any action against them. He asked the three to immediately overcome the petroleum crisis and be careful in the future.
The ministers told Nawaz Sharif that the crisis emerged following the government decision to slash petroleum prices in line with the slump in prices in the international market. They, however, admitted that their three ministries, which are responsible for ensuring availability of petrol in the country, could not foresee the situation.
According to sources, the prime minister said that he would preside over another meeting on Tuesday (today) to review the situation. The prime minister has already suspended four top officials of the petroleum ministry, including its secretary, over the crisis.
Published in The Express Tribune, January 20th, 2015.
COMMENTS (4)
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i wonder if the sudden drop in price of oil caused the owners of petrol stations to refuse to sell at lower rates creating a bottleneck? If so, they too should be punished.
NS is Fagin in "Charles Dickens Oliver Twist" and his cabinet is made of "Artful Dodgers". So they are all part of the same plot of Thieves and Pickpockets.
PM U have to sacrifice some big guns . U have fired some very small ones. This shall not do anything. Ensure that such events R not repeated again.
Why is Minister of "Petroleum" in office when there is no Petrol in the pumps? Dar and Asif must be responsible but they have different portfolios while Mr. Shahid Khaqan Abbasi has sole responsibility of it.
The issue isn't supply related nor can be blamed on private companies as it is a government controlled industry.