PESHAWAR: Pakistan Peoples Party Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari Tuesday said the masses would hold Prime Minister Imran Khan accountable for every misery he had incurred upon people.

The country has been facing complete failure of a government that is "toying with Pakistan's future and its people," he said while addressing the PPP's 54th foundation day event. 

Bialwal said after three years every Pakistani was aware that the real face of 'tabdeeli's' was surging inflation, historic poverty and unemployment, adding those were the antics of Khan, and this is 'Naya Pakistan'.

Talking about the recently gone viral tapes, which allegedly featured ex-chief justice of Pakistan Saqib Nisar and another of PML-N Vice-President Maryam Nawaz, he said: "Let the conspirators plot their conspiracies, let people leak tapes, we will struggle along with the people and foil every conspiracy."

Bilawal, reciting a poetic verse for PM Imran Khan, said: "Tumse pehle wo jo aik shaks yahan takht nasheen tha, usko bhi apne khuda hone par itna he yaqeen tha (the person who held the reins before you, was confident of being a god, just like you)."

The PPP chairman told PM Imran Khan that "only oppress people to the extent which you can yourself bear", as he reminded the premier that people who sat in his office earlier were also of the view that the country's future depended on them.

The PPP chairman said people who had earlier blamed PPP leaders for corruption and "phoned courts to take action against them", are now certified "thieves".

Bilawal asked PM Imran Khan to halt his "anti-democratic methods", as he vowed that in the upcoming local body elections, PPP and the masses would hold him accountable.

"Imran will not be allowed to run away. No plane would land late at night to fly him to Saudi Arabia or London," Bilawal warned the premier.

The PPP chairman announced that the party would hold countrywide protests against the constant increase in petrol price on December 10. On December 17, after Friday prayers, PPP workers would protest against the ongoing gas crisis at their district headquarters.

Following these, a historic rally will be held in Garhi Khuda Bakhsh, where an action plan against the incumbent government would also be announced.

Criticising the government for inflation in the country, the PPP stalwart said prices of basic commodities increased manifold in recent months just because of a lack of planning and vision.

"PPP will stand with the inflation-hit masses in taking "revenge" from the incumbent government," he maintained.

Islamabad: The federal government Tuesday announced to maintain the prices of petroleum products.

Following the prime minister's decision, the petrol price will remain unchanged at Rs145.82 per litre, and the price of diesel will remain Rs142.62 per litre as before.

The prices of kerosene oil and light diesel will stay at Rs116.53 and Rs114.07 per litre, respectively.

According to the notification, the new prices will be effective from December 1.

On November 5, the government had jacked up the price of petrol in Pakistan by Rs8.03 per litre despite November 1's decision of the prime minister to not increase the prices.

Thirteen players at Portuguese club Belenenses have tested positive for the newly discovered COVID variant ‘Omicron’, upon return from national team duty in South Africa.

As many as 44 players and staff at Belenenses are now quarantining while Benfica has not taken the same steps due to what it calls low-risk for getting the virus from their opponents.

It has now been confirmed all 13 players have the Omicron variant, first detected in South Africa last week.

The players, reportedly, wanted to cancel the game, but officials pressed forward with the contest. 

Meanwhile, Portugal’s health authorities are also sequencing the viruses from two passengers who tested positive for COVID after flying in from Maputo, Mozambique. 

Portugal’s health institute INSA, said in a statement that “there is still no scientific data to support [the Omicron variant’s] greater transmissibility or its ability to reduce the effectiveness of current vaccines.”

The World Health Organization (WHO), has declared the new strain a ‘variant of concern’.