President William Ruto now says his hands are tied over the rise in fuel prices in the country.
In a parliamentary group meeting convened by President Ruto as the party leader of UDA and the Kenya Kwanza Coalition attended by over 200 MPs, the reality of the high cost of living which has largely been attributed to the rise in fuel prices featured prominently.
Sources privy to the meeting disclosed to Citizen TV that leaders raised concerns over the ever-rising cost of fuel prices which is making life hard for millions of Kenyans thus making the regime unpopular to the masses, an issue that the Head of State said was not making him lose his sleep as his hands are tied.
MPs questioned Energy Cabinet Secretary Davis Chirchir during his appearance before the National Assembly Energy Committee regarding Kenya’s inability to lower fuel prices in comparison to its neighboring states.
An MP stated, “As we speak, prices are going down in Tanzania while they are rising in Kenya.”
Chirchir responded, saying that taxes would be the reason why the product in Tanzania or Uganda would be more expensive than in Kenya rather than freight and premium. We will always have lower freight and premiums, which is why I mentioned we need more time to talk and walk members through the terms of the negotiations.
The officials from the Ministry of Energy have also linked the variations in fuel prices between our nation and our neighbors to the appreciation of their respective currencies in relation to the Kenyan shilling due to fluctuations in the dollar exchange rate.
Next week, Kenya Kwanza MPs will convene again as a Parliamentary Group to talk about the skyrocketing cost of fuel, which is still causing hardship for Kenyans at the pump.
