Hafiz Naeem rejects new electricity tariffs, demands more cuts

KARACHI: Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) chief Hafiz Naeemur Rehman criticised the federal government’s recent announcement of a reduction in electricity tariffs, calling the measure inadequate and demanding more.Addressing a press conference in Karachi, Hafiz Naeem said Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s relief of Rs7.41 per unit was insufficient.
“The burden on the people must be reduced more substantially. Every past government has been involved in the current energy mess,” he stated while pointing fingers at successive regimes including the PML-N, PPP, PTI, and the PDM coalition for supporting Independent Power Producers (IPPs).He further claimed that K-Electric was sold for the price of “mere utility poles,” alleging that the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) played a role in the controversial privatisation of the power utility.
“The IPPs must undergo a forensic audit. They receive hefty capacity payments and yet dodge taxes. Over the past few years alone, they have been granted tax exemptions worth Rs1,700 billion,” Hafiz Naeem asserted.