A crisis no less

While other factors may have been at play too, the main responsibility for petrol crisis lies with petroleum minister

The term can sometimes be loosely overused, but the petrol shortage that occurred a few days ago was certainly a crisis. At a time when the country is looking to lure investors in the energy sector, the petrol shortage was a grave reminder that we first need to sort our house in order before inviting guests over. Just to recap recent events, with global oil prices plummeting, petrol prices in Pakistan also came down substantially. Coupled with the availability of CNG compressing, consumers understandably switched to petrol. The two factors, along with the reluctance of the oil marketing companies (OMC) and refineries to stock large amounts of petrol, the rising circular debt and the huge receivables also contributed to the petrol shortage.

At this time, the rational response would have been to gather the OMCs, refineries, Ogra, the petroleum ministry, and maybe even the finance ministry since it is always keen on increasing the GST rate on petroleum products to boost revenue, to sort out the matter. Instead, what transpired was the suspension of officials before any investigation. A subsequent inquiry found Ogra responsible, which the regulator was quick to rubbish. The petroleum ministry proudly states its mission is to “ensure availability and security of sustainable supply of oil and gas for economic development and strategic requirements of Pakistan”. Yet, the minister, Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, says he would only resign “if found guilty” of involvement in the current crisis. The fact that the shortage occurred while he chaired the ministerial seat and failed to do his duty of ‘ensuring availability’ of petrol is cause enough for him to resign. While other factors may have been at play too, the main responsibility, at the end of the day, lies with the petroleum minister. If Pakistan lacks storage facilities, if there was reluctance to stock fuel and failure to monitor available supply, whose responsibility is it ultimately to ensure that all these factors in the supply chain of petrol are taken care of? It is time that ministers realised that even minor indiscretions on their part can lead to misery for millions.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 31^st, 2015.

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