Mian Zahid asks PM to reject gas price hike.

• Position: Prime Minister Imran Khan

President Pakistan Businessmen and Intellectuals Forum (PBIF), President All Karachi Industrial Alliance (AKIA), Senior Vice Chairman of the Businessmen Panel of FPCCI and former provincial minister, Mian Zahid Hussain on Monday said proposed gas price hike will damage masses and economic activities. Prime Minister Imran Khan should reject OGRA's proposal to hike the gas price by 47 percent for SNGPL and 28 percent for SSGC, he said.

Talking to the business community, Mian Zahid Hussain said that the government has already increased gas tariff by 133 percent therefore another hike cannot be justified.

The veteran business leader said that an upward revision in gas tariff will also increase the tariff of electricity and erode the buying power of the masses which are already reeling under runaway inflation. Gas is almost half of the country's energy mix which should not be subjected to frequent fluctuations lest it compromises production and exports, he warned.

The former minister noted that the government has increased prices of petroleum products, medicine, edibles while the currency has been devalued therefore masses should not be burdened...