Friday night delivered the news Pakistanis dread most. Another fuel shock. Pointing to the war in the Gulf, the government announced a Rs 55 per litre hike in diesel and petrol prices, a near-20 per cent leap in one stroke. At Rs321 per litre for petrol and Rs336 per litre for diesel, Pakistan is back near record highs. The petroleum minister said the move came “under compulsion” after a sharp rise in global prices, and the prime minister warned against hoarding as queues formed in Lahore and Karachi.
Still, the state chose the bluntest instrument. It also raised the petroleum levy on petrol to a record Rs105.4 per litre, turning every refill into a tax collection point. In a country where poverty has risen to 29 per cent, and unemployment is at a two-decade high, explanations offer little comfort. Reports suggest transport fares, cooking fuel and even groceries have already begun to climb.
Yet the squeeze is not shared equally. Politicians and bureaucrats continue to enjoy generous fuel perks. A 2024 investigation estimated that more than 35,000 official vehicles consume over Rs50 million worth of fuel daily. In 2022, traders publicly demanded the withdrawal of the “free fuel facility” for senior bureaucrats, arguing that the same state that urges citizens to tighten belts bankrolls official comfort.
That moral hazard has only deepened. Pakistan has lived through this movie. The 2008 oil shock triggered inflation that battered low-income families long after global prices eased. The 2022 price surge pushed transport costs into household budgets already shredded by food inflation and rupee depreciation. Each time, the response has leaned heavily on regressive consumption rather than credible burden-sharing. Citizens were asked to absorb “temporary” pain while state expenditure continued with familiar privileges.
Still, the government says there is relief in sight. Minister Ali Pervaiz Malik promises a weekly review and vows that “as soon as the situation improves internationally, we will reduce prices at the same speed”. For now, he warns, the crisis could drag on. If the Gulf conflict continues to choke shipping routes, oil could climb further, and more increases may follow.
There is a way to frame national sacrifice that people accept. Begin at the top, cut the visible waste and then ask the public for restraint. Other countries facing oil shocks at least attempt such signals. Here, the question is simple: can those who preach austerity first practise it themselves, before asking a weary public to tighten its belt yet again? *