Hike in POL prices: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa traders, transporters to launch protest campaign

Trading bodies and transporters of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on Saturday announced to launch protest campaign against the recent hike in POL products and increasing power and gas tariff. The announcement was made during a protest camp jointly set up by All Pakistan Oil Tankers Owners Association (APOTOA) KPK, local traders, transporters, and members of civil society organisation outside the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly.
The protesters led by the provincial President APOTOA Nasir Ali Khan, representatives from civil society organisation, Khalid Ayub, Shakeel Waheedullah, Shahab Khattak Advocate, Sarhad Goods Owners Association Vice President Ashraf Khalil and others hoisted banner and placards inscribed different slogans.
The protesters while talking to reporters said they were going to start a protest drive against the unprecedented increase in POL products, and growing price hike throughout province. The protest drive, they maintained, would be carried out phase wise by launching from district level to centre. They lamented that POL prices had increased with every passing day, ultimately affecting the poverty stricken masses, and said that soaring price of essential commodities was broken backbone of common man.
The protesters criticised that the government had failed to take any prompt steps for mitigating the suffering of poor masses, whereas the increasing prices of POL products multiplied their miseries. Shakeel Waheedullah demanded for withdrawal of recent hike in POL prices and called for taking steps to maintain upward trend in essential commodities.
Nasir Ali Khan accused the political administration of Khyber Agency of taking huge bribe from the oil tankers while carrying oil to the agency and Jalalabad Afghanistan. He added that administration did not permit more than two tankers twice in a week to agency despite the Governor KP strongly ordered the administration for free movement of local oil tankers, which was not being obeyed. Khalid Ayub said the Caravaan-e-Inqilab was non-political organisation, which was amalgamation of non-political stakeholders, had joined hands for sake of the poor and integrity and sovereignty of the country.