Re: Nadra’s disclosure: Over 2m rich pay no taxes
This has to do with the planning and corruption in the higher circles of our power centers. No one forced the previous regimes to go for expensive IPPs (based on thermal power). Now the situation is that we have the installed capacity but cant use it. The government has tried its utmost to pay off the circular debt during the past few years, but they cant keep up. This has double impact, first the government has to subsidize the electricity provided to the customers, on the other hand the electricity rates have gone up considerably and its becoming difficult for the people to pay them even if they want to.
With the result they have to carry out extensive load shedding at exorbitant rates. Due to high inflation, lower salaries people cannot afford to pay for the electricity they are using (if you convert the bills that Pakistanis are paying they are more than the bills one pays in Western countries), with the result “kunda system” is increasing. Have you seen any country in the world where you can pay up to 60 % of your salaries for electricity bills, and that too for using it for 12-16 hours? If the government had gone for a proper mix of generation technologies to start with the situation wouldnt have been this bad.
Gas shortages also due to bad planning, the government did nothing to increase its capacity of gas production (although they were aware of its depletion). Coupled with this massive increase in CNG stations, and supplying gas to captive power plants (on subsidies) has further deteriorated the situation. Pakistan maybe is one of the few countries which is charging the poor to provide subsidized gas to billionaires of the country (captive power).
I agree with you that we as citizens should also fulfill our responsibilities, but the people have almost reached the boiling point.