PESHAWAR: The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Petroleum Dealers and Carriage Contractors Association has threatened a province-wide shutdown of filling stations in protest against the federal government’s decision to fix a 6 percent margin on petroleum products.
Addressing a press conference at the Peshawar Press Club on Saturday, the chairman of the association, Gul Nawaz Afridi said petroleum dealers were facing severe financial hardship under current conditions.
President Akhtar Nawaz Khan, secretary Behzadur Rehman, and chief patron Maqsood Anwar were also present on the occasion.
He termed the 6 percent margin unjust in the prevailing economic situation and demanded that the federal government immediately increase the dealers’ margin on petroleum products from 6 percent to 8 percent.
The petrol pump owners were facing problems despite regularly paying taxes to the Federal Board of Revenue and other government institutions, he maintained.
He also alleged that illegal roadside fuel vendors, commonly known as “dabba petrol” operators, were being facilitated, putting registered petrol pumps at a disadvantage.
The association leadership warned that if their demands were not accepted, petrol dealers across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa would not hesitate to shut down petrol pumps and could join a nationwide strike on the directives of central leadership.
Afridi added that recent increases in petroleum prices has severely affected the financial capacity of dealers, forcing them to purchase fuel at higher rates while making advance payments. He maintained that after meeting operational costs, the effective profit margin was reduced to nearly 1.5 percent.
He reiterated that the association had formally raised the issue with the federal authorities and expressed hope for a positive response, warning that failure to address their demands could lead to province-wide and nationwide protests and shutdowns of petrol pumps.
