By Bonface Mulyungi
Deputy President Kithure Kindiki has urged Kenyans to remain patient and avoid violence as the government engages stakeholders on the rising cost of fuel, which he attributed to the ongoing conflict involving Iran.
Speaking on Monday during a consultative forum with grassroots leaders from Tharaka Constituency at his Irunduni rural home in Tharaka-Nithi County, Kindiki said President William Ruto, who is in Azerbaijan, had directed him and four Cabinet Secretaries to convene talks with key players in the sector.
Kindiki said the meeting will bring together stakeholders including owners and operators of public transport vehicles, manufacturers and other petroleum-dependent industries to explore solutions to the fuel price crisis.
He said the fuel shock was a global problem that should not be politicised.
“I want to challenge the critics of this government to look Kenyans in the eye and show us which country in the world has not had fuel prices increasing. This is a global challenge. It is not a Kenyan issue,” Kindiki said.
The Deputy President said the government had previously lowered fuel prices before the latest conflict, claiming pump prices had dropped from Ksh.218 per litre to Ksh.171 per litre before the war.
He defended the government’s interventions, saying measures such as reducing VAT on petroleum products from 16 per cent to 8 per cent and injecting funds into the stabilisation fund had prevented prices from skyrocketing.
“If the government had not made the interventions, the price of fuel per litre would have shot to between Ksh.300 and Ksh.400,” he said.
While acknowledging the right to protest, Kindiki warned against destruction of property and what he termed economic sabotage.
He added that the country could not afford instability amid economic strain, warning against incitement for political gain.
Kindiki also said the National Infrastructure Fund currently holds Ksh.350 billion, which he said will finance water, energy and infrastructure projects, including in arid and semi-arid regions, beginning next year.
