Energy & Power

Column
Reverse Swing

People to Put Their Anger in Ballots than on Streets

Farid Hossain

When the gasoline price hit a record $75 a barrel in international market late April Bangladesh‘s Finance Minister spent some sleepless nights. Saifur Rahman was in a dilemma: whether or not to raise the gasoline price to make up the losses that Bangladesh would suffer because of the international price hike.

Saying that the issue was sensitive the Finance Minister told reporters on April 30 that the government would like to wait for another week before taking a decision. The issue is sensitive because, as he said, a hike at this moment would affect the entire economy.

What Rahman, however, did not say was that a hike in the petroleum prices, especially diesel that accounts for more than 61 percent of the country‘s annual gasoline import, would affect the ruling BNP‘s bid to return to power in the next general elections.

Because a hike in the oil prices would have a snowballing effect on the economy pushing the inflation further up. The voters are already annoyed with the ever-rising prices of the essentials. How hard the government may try to put up a brave face, markets tell the real stories.
That a syndicate backed by some influential government officials was involved in the record hike in the prices of sugar is now no secret. Commerce Minister Altaf Hossain Chowdhury and Commerce Ministry’s Adviser Barkatullah Bulu had to pay the price for failing to curb the rising prices of the essentials and their alleged involvement in the infamous sugar syndicate.

Because the alleged involvement of the syndicate sugar turned bitter for the people and now for the Altaf Chowdhury and Bulu as well.

So, the government decided to put some extra thoughts before raising the oil prices. It is trying its best to avoid putting itself in a difficult position. The government does not want to anger the voters when election is just months away.

But for this consideration I‘m sure the government would have hiked the petroleum prices almost immediately after the hike in the international prices. In fact, it is more because of concern about its fate in the next election than the plight of the voters the government has delayed raising the gasoline prices following rise in international market.

Meanwhile, an unusual move of gasoline rationing has created almost an anarchic situation in the market. Words about the rationing got out early prompting many station owners hoard gasoline and thus create an artificial crisis in supply. That has immediately hit the transport sector forcing many buses, trucks, cars off the streets.

Stations that were selling the gasoline limited the supply to 10 liters a car forcing them to hop from one station to another to fill their tanks. On April 30, the day this article was written, gasoline supply was just half the requirement in the capital city. The picture outside the capital city was more dismal.

In two days, meaning last Saturday and Sunday, about 900 of the country 1,337 petrol pumps were shut down because there was no supply. More than 100 of those close pumps were in the capital city. The petroleum crisis sent 60 percent of uses and trucks off the streets, according to GM Siraj, an MP from ruling BNP who is also the chairman of Bangladesh Bus-Truck Owners Association.

In rationing the gasoline supply the government had hardly had a convincing argument. But the move made the market a bit nervous allowing hoarding by dishonest traders and creating panic among the buyers.

So far the move has caused sufferings of the users and allowed the dishonest traders to earn extras by raising the prices taking advantage of the wrong handing by the government. That‘s not good news for the ruling coalition. Voters have already got a raw deal from the government. They are likely to put their anger in ballots than on streets.