The Punjab has been feeling the heat of fuel crisis for the last over a week. The Sindh, especially Karachi, and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa are the next. The government appears to be in an awful situation as on one hand it is trying to handlepanic buying by restoringfull-fledged oil suppliesand on the other it is attempting to defuse the public anger. However, the crisis are building up,inviting the prime minister’s rage who has so far fired several senior officials.
The shortage of petrol is the tipof the iceberg as bigger problems are ahead for the nation if the government ministers continue to ignore the sanctity of the mandate the people hadreposed in them. Instead of doing their jobs according to the portfoliosassigned to them, they have launched witch hunt against their political opponents and are keeping the atmosphere charged by issuing sarcastic statements against theirrivals.
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has chaired a meeting of the ministers and bureaucrats to find some sort of urgent remedy to resolve the fuel crisis but the ministries are shifting their responsibilities to one another. That is the prototype frame of reference and overall behavior of the nation. Every individual wants hefty perks and salaries, but does not want to share any responsibility. The prime minister has formed a two-member team to investigate the cause of the crisis. However, the supply will obviously be restored in days and the chapter of crisis will be closed. Petroleum Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi has apologised to the nation for the crisis, but fell short of offering his resignation, asking the people to avoid panic buying and promising to cut oil prices by over Rs5 a litre from February 1.The finance minister, who has a fair share in the fuel crisis, demands clean chit to the problem, saying he is part of the government but not part of the problem. According to him, there is a need to maintain fiscal discipline to control circular debt. Meanwhile, in its initial investigation, the two-member team has informed the prime minister that petrol shortage was a serious failure on the part of Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority. However, the authority has refused to accept any responsibility as the post of the member oil has been lying vacant for the last six months.The clock is ticking on but the nation would not wake up from its slumber.
