KARACHI: Pasban Democratic Party PDP Chairman Altaf Shakoor here Sunday asked why the electricity consumers of Pakistan pay Rs 124 billion for capacity charges of ‘surplus’ electricity when they also face the agonising prolonged load shedding on daily basis.
Commenting on the government decision that the electricity consumers will pay capacity charges of over Rs124 billion for the surplus power generation during the last quarter of fiscal year 2022-23 in the coming months, he asked if there is surplus electricity, why consumers are tortured with hours long load shedding in the length and breadth of Pakistan.
He said that when this surplus electricity is just unused, under which law the consumers are asked to pay for this electricity that was not provided to them and nor used by them. He charging consumers for something that was never supplied to them is simply against not only the law and constitution but also the common sense.
He said if challenged the courts would strike down this illogical decision of the government to slap Rs 124 Billion on the consumers for the electricity that in the first place was not supplied to them.
He said it is just ill planning to install power generation that is not utilised by the consumers but that is still billed to them. He alleged that private power plants are the biggest financial scam in the history of Pakistan as these ‘modern day East India companies’ are looting the government and people of Pakistan with both hands. He said this is a ‘broad daylight robbery’ and economic hit men of these East India companies in the ranks and files of successive governments of Pakistan are involved in this great cheating.
He said if there is really any surplus power it should be provided to domestic, industrial and agricultural consumers by ending load shedding.
He questioned the rationale behind asking the consumers to pay for ‘surplus electricity’ that was never utilised, despite immense demand evident by power load shedding.
He said citizens are decrying lack of electricity and prolonged load shedding on one hand and the government is claiming on the other hand that a surplus electricity is not only available but the consumers will also have to pay for it, even though it was not supplied to them. He said this is the biggest joke of this century and a mockery of both law and logic.
He said the apex courts should take suo motu notice of this grave violation of human rights of the Pakistani citizens and order a probe to know why the private power producers were allowed to generate this surplus electricity and who struck the deals that they would be paid for this surplus power even when it is not utilised. He said this is a mega corruption scam and the people of Pakistan should see the faces of politicians who were behind it.
He said it is high time that the mistakes of the past should be corrected now and the power consumers of Pakistan should be saved from brutal exploitation.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2023
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