Weekly review of Petroleum products’ prices

The system of the change of the prices of petroleum products has come under severe criticism of late and all the voices raised talk that the system the adjustment of fuel prices on a weekly basis suffers from a severe anomaly in.

In the first instance, the National Assembly Standing Committee on Petroleum expressed its concern pleading last week that it has added to the already persisting confusion.

The committee not only pleaded doing away with the current practice of a weekly review but also voted for the abolition of the Ministry for Petroleum at the center and devolving this subject to provinces to establish their own oil ministries.

Now the National Assembly has, in a unanimous resolution adopted on Friday, called for the practice of weekly review of prices and resolved that they should be determined on a monthly basis.

This decision must be condemned and better be withdrawn. The overall faulty fuel pricing structure needs to be reviewed. Preferably the system proposed by the NA panel of devolving this matter to provinces presents a good resolution of the issue.

When pricing of all other essential commodities rests with the federating units, this subject may also be placed within their purview because petroleum products are no less an essential commodity of daily use and.

This decision appears more viable than the present system even for the sake of uniformity with other commodities.

Pricing of fuel is working with federating units almost the entire world which holds this useful for the consuming public.

Similarly, when the change of oil prices is done not in commensuration with the change of global market and the federal government’s whims dominates in the matter, it becomes all the more important that provinces should not only exercise this right but also establish separate oil ministries to do the needful with the global trend in sight and active coordination among federal units.

Even if provinces change fuel prices on a daily basis, as is prevalent in several states around the world, the change of authority should work smoothly notwithstanding the provinces’ preparedness to shoulder additional burden.

However, the best possible way out has been suggested by the NA resolution and the earlier it is implemented, better the outcome.

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Posted by Faisal Farooq on Oct 29 2012. Filed under Opinion. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.