Jamaat-e-Islami Ameer Hafiz Naeemur Rehman on Friday said the government could save Rs3 trillion to Rs4 trillion if it accepted Jamaat-e-Islami proposals, as he announced that a "super long march" would begin tomorrow and reach Islamabad on September 23 and 24. Addressing a press conference here, he said petrol prices in Pakistan had increased several times more than in India and Bangladesh during the recent war situation, placing an unbearable burden on the public.
He said the government was announcing inadequate and showy relief packages instead of providing genuine relief to people. He questioned why oil marketing companies were being allowed higher profits while consumers continued to face rising inflation. The Jamaat-e-Islami chief said increases in petroleum prices directly affected the middle and lower-income classes, as small cars were mostly used by ordinary households.
He rejected government justification that global market conditions and other factors were responsible for the price increases, saying the government was using higher taxes and levies to meet its revenue targets while refusing to cut unnecessary expenditure. He said the government should reduce the interest rate by three percentage points, arguing that even a one-percentage-point reduction could save Rs574 billion. The government is protecting banks' profits and authorities should take steps to eliminate interest from the economy.
He called for an end to capacity payments to Independent Power Producers (IPPs) and regasification plants, saying the government should review such payments in the public interest. "The petroleum levy must end, the Istehkam-e-Pakistan Party (IPP) mafia must end and bread must become cheaper," he said. He said the Jamaat-e-Islami campaign was not directed against any individual or political party but aimed at securing relief for people.
He said public participation in the movement is increasing and that the party is in contact with leaders of the farmers alliance as well as Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI). He said the PTI supported the Jamaat-e-Islami movement and the Jamaat-e-Islami also supported its protests. Announcing details of the September 20 march, he said caravans would head towards Islamabad from different parts of the country, including Balochistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Punjab and Sindh.
Participants from Karachi would travel to the capital by train. The government could hold talks immediately if it had a workable solution to public demands, but delaying tactics would not be accepted. He assured citizens that the Jamaat-e-Islami would not block roads and that its September 20 activities would not create unnecessary difficulties for the public.
He said the party wanted the Medical and Dental College Admission Test (MDCAT) to be held and that its march would not obstruct students appearing for the examination. The Jamaat-e-Islami would bear all expenses of the long march itself. Jamaat-e-Islami Deputy Ameer Mian Muhammad Aslam, Deputy Secretary General Firasat Shah and Islamabad Ameer Nasrullah Randhawa were present at the press conference.