KP Chief Minister Sohail Afridi meets with TTAP at National Assembly opposition leader Mahmood Achakzai’s house. PHOTO: TTAP
ISLAMABAD:
The Tehreek Tahaffuz-e-Ayeen Pakistan (TTAP), a major opposition alliance, on Sunday announced plans to launch a protest campaign against the latest rise in oil prices and said it is seeking support from other political parties for a joint movement.
Speaking to The Express PAkGazette, TTAP spokesperson Akhunzada Hussain Yousafzai said the party was in touch with allied political groups, including the PTI, to finalize a coordinated response.
“We and the PTI are on the same page on this issue. However, consultations are going on with other parties that are part of the alliance. After bringing them on board, we will finalize a course of action,” he said.
He added that a parliamentary meeting of the alliance had been called for Monday, where the issue will be discussed in detail.
The party also plans to approach other opposition parties that are not part of the alliance, including Maulana Fazlur Rehman-led JUIF, to join the protest movement.
In a separate statement issued earlier in the day, TTAP strongly condemned the rise in oil prices, saying that despite a drop in global oil prices over the past week, the government had increased fuel rates primarily through an increase in oil tax, which it said was not linked to international oil trends.
The party claimed that gasoline prices in Pakistan had risen 61 percent since tensions between Iran and the United States, compared to 38 percent in Sri Lanka and 16 percent in Bangladesh, while remaining unchanged in India, calling it “evidence of the government’s failure.”
He said rising fuel prices had increased transport and food costs and pushed inflation into double digits, warning that such policies were deepening economic hardship and unemployment.
TTAP said it would announce protest demonstrations in the coming days against what it called “anti-people policies.”
Fuel prices in Pakistan have shown a sustained upward trend since late February amid heightened regional tensions and repeated adjustments in oil taxes, with successive increases contributing to rising transportation and commodity costs.
The protest announcement came shortly after the government increased petrol prices by Rs 14.92 per liter to Rs 414.78, a move that further intensified political criticism over rising fuel costs, adding to ongoing concerns about inflationary pressure.
