The Pakistan Petroleum Dealers Association (PPDA) have announced a nationwide strike from November 25 over selling petrol “on low profit margins”.
A representative for the association said that all petrol pumps across the country will be closed and only ambulances will be able to get petrol from Thursday, November 25.
“We have no other option but to go on strike as the government has failed to meet the November 17 deadline for the fulfilment of our demands,” furthermore, the petrol pumps in Kashmir and Gilgit Baltistan will also remain shut on Thursday, the representative added.
He said the strike could hold out to an undefined period if the government continues to ignore the association’s demands and keeps on giving it false relief.
However, this is the second time that the association has decided for a strike in three weeks. They had made a similar announcement for November 5 but withdrew after a government team agreed to increase margins on the sale of petroleum products by 6% within a few days.
Moreover, the meeting also agreed to constitute a committee under petroleum secretary Dr Arshad Mahmood to ensure the implementation of the agreement through approvals from the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) and the federal cabinet over the next 10 days.
However, there has been no progress ever since.
PPDA Chairman Abdul Sami Khan said petroleum dealers have been in a difficult position due to the high cost of business and low margins. He further said that the government guarantees a margin of only 2% on sales of fuel oil in the face of rising electricity tariffs.
