The traders association has announced plans to stage nationwide protestsafter Eidul Fitr in response to the escalating inflation and deterioratingeconomic conditions in Pakistan.
President of Markazi Tanzeem Tajran, Muhammad Kashif Chaudhry, statedduring a press conference that if these issues are not resolved, tradersacross the country will organize conventions and demonstrations.
Chaudhry criticized the government for failing to pass on the benefits ofreduced crude oil prices to the public, while simultaneously refusing toreduce its non-development expenses. He also called for an immediate 50%reduction in non-development expenses and urged politicians to agree on acharter of democracy to address the current crisis.
Chaudhry slammed the government’s Ramadan relief package, arguing that itis a source of humiliation for the poor, who are forced to wait in longqueues for poor-quality flour. He accused parliamentary mafias of beingresponsible for the flour crisis and expressed concern over FBR raids onpoints of sale without providing traders with income tax forms in Urdu.
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The announcement comes as Pakistan’s inflation rate reaches an all-timehigh, with prices rising by 35.4% from a year earlier, according to thePakistan Bureau of Statistics. Core inflation, which excludes food andenergy prices, has also risen sharply, leading analysts to predict thatPakistan is heading towards hyperinflation.
