Pakistani man commits suicide due to rising power bills

A man from Pakistan has allegedly committed suicide near Faisalabad in Pakistan after he failed to pay Rs40,000 electricity bill.

The family of Muhammad Hamza (35), father of two minor children, told police that he was at his wits' end due to financial constraints. When he could not pay his power bill, he shot himself dead, reports Dawn. 

On Tuesday, the interim set-up for the cabinet meeting expressed helplessness on how to address the issue of the rising power bills in Pakistan. Suggestions on spreading electricity bills in installments were also discussed. 

However, some of the members of the cabinet opposed the option of installments and feared that below-target receivables in the power sector in the coming months could irk the IMF. On the other side, there was a view that consumers could easily pay four to six instalments of inflated bills in the coming months because electricity consumption drastically drops in winter.

According to reports, interim Information Minister Murtaza Solangi, who didn't immediately hold a presser after the cabinet's meeting, later told a private TV channel that the government was engaging with the IMF regarding relief measures for electricity consumers and an announcement was expected soon.

Solangi revealed that the cabinet took decisions for providing short-, medium- and long-term relief to consumers. However, he also cautioned that these decisions entailed some implications on which the IMF needed to be taken on board.

"As we speak, our Finance Minister Shamshad Akhtar is talking to them. So, I hope we will soon be in a position to make the announcement," he said.

When asked about a timeline for the announcement, he replied, "It is a matter of few hours. You are aware of the time difference and complications pertaining to talks with the IMF."

Solangi said he was expecting that a decision would be reached without any difficulty as the relief measures finalised by the caretaker cabinet would not affect the "two pillars" of primary surplus and circular debt, says Dawn. 

Meanwhile, nationwide protests over power bills entered the fifth day on Tuesday, with citizens taking to the streets, blocking roads and torching their bills as a sign of anger at rising electricity prices.

The Jamaat-i-Islami has also announced a countrywide strike on 2 Sep (Saturday) against electricity bills.

Gojra Saddar police on Tuesday registered two cases against 158 people for protesting against inflated power bills and blocking the M-4 at two points between Gojra and Toba Tek Singh interchanges on Monday.

Pakistan's caretaker government is working on coming up with relief measures as it sees nationwide protests over massive power bills while as it tries to strike a balance between avoiding drawing the IMF's ire and causing more citizens to blow a fuse.