SCCI demands govt withdraw increase in electricity, fuel prices

PESHAWAR: Backing the ongoing protest of traders’ community against increasing inflation, prices of electricity, gas and petroleum products, the Sarhad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI) asked the interim government to revise its decision in the best interest of economy of the country.

Ijaz Khan Afridi, acting president of the SCCI while talking to this scribe here on Sunday, said the government was virtually unseen in the country wherein economy and other matters were deteriorating with each passing day. “We don’t know who is running the country.”

Afridi said economic, trade and commercial activities have been adversely affected owing to frequently increasing electricity, gas tariffs, high dollar value and rising petroleum products’ prices,

However, he criticized the incumbent interim government for keeping a complete mum in this regard and to endorse the policies of the previous coalition government which had left the national economy in an extremely dangerous situation.

Afridi made it clear that the country’s economy and businesses cannot progress until the resolving issues of the businessmen and provision of facilities and incentives to them.

The SCCI chief asked the interim government to restrain from enforcement of anti-business and trade-hostile initiatives and instead frame business-friendly policies in consultation with chambers, traders’ bodies and relevant stakeholders to put the national economy on a path of sustainable growth.

He questioned: “How the economy, trade, exports, business and exports could flourish when US dollars were unavailable and its rate surged up over Rs300”?

Ijaz Afridi warned that if the interim government didn’t realise the gravity of the situation, the national economy would completely collapse and Pakistan may face a Sri Lanka-like situations.

Pakistan currently is economically unstable while industries, business, trade and exports are also plunging down with each passing day, the SCCI chief remarked.

Therefore, he asked the interim government to take pragmatic steps to resolve issues being faced by the business community and to revive the country’s ailing economy.

He furthermore asked that independent economic policies should be framed to free the country from the clutches of foreign lenders forever.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2023