President William Ruto has dismissed fears that energy prices may rise this month.
According to reports, consumers will have to dig deeper into their pockets beginning January 1st, as the cost of power is expected to rise by 15% due to the end of the subsidy.
But, in a rebuttal, the President said on Saturday that there will be no new electricity tariffs and that the government has already made the appropriate measures to ensure a dependable platform for running the economy.
“I want to allay the fears that are being spread by people that there will be an increase in electricity costs. I want to assure the country that there will be no additional charges today or going into the future on electricity bills to the people of Kenya,” Ruto said.
“Contrary to the stories being peddled around that there will be job losses, there will be an additional cost of living…those are just people who are speculators,” he added.
Ruto stated that the rates for energy requirements are currently being reviewed and that public consultations will take place in three months to guarantee that the tariffs are responsive.
This, he claims, will also help to ensure that those at the bottom of the pyramid are not harmed while also benefiting producers.
Ruto has been critical of Uhuru Kenyatta’s subsidies on things such as petrol and staple maize grain, calling them unsustainable.
“I have taken a bold measure to ensure the country recovers economically by removing subsidies which were initially a strategy deployed for political expediency for that time because we had an election.” he said during his New Year Speech.
