Nairobi. At least four people have been reported dead as protests over rising fuel prices escalated across Kenya on Monday, disrupting transport and business activities in several towns and cities.
The unrest coincided with a nationwide matatu strike that stranded thousands of commuters and forced many people to walk long distances to work after public transport operators suspended services from midnight.
In Nakuru, police reportedly shot dead one person as demonstrations intensified over the rising cost of fuel and the transport shutdown.
In a separate incident in Kimbo, Ruiru, three people died and two others were injured after boda boda riders travelling at high speed collided while allegedly attempting to evade a roadblock erected by protesters, according to witnesses.
Police also fired tear gas to disperse protesting youths near the Kencom area in the central business district of Nairobi, while some demonstrators burned tyres and blocked roads leading into the capital, worsening traffic congestion.
The protests erupted after Kenya’s Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority announced a fresh fuel price increase last week, with petrol prices rising by as much as 23.5 percent following another increase last month.
The latest adjustments have been linked to global supply pressures caused by the ongoing conflict involving Iran in the Middle East.
Under the new prices, super petrol in Nairobi now retails at KSh214.25 per litre, up from KSh206.97, while diesel rose sharply to KSh242.92 from KSh196.63. Kerosene remained unchanged at KSh152.78 per litre.
The Transport Sector Alliance had earlier announced that vehicles affiliated with its member associations would stop operating in protest against the latest increase, arguing that higher fuel costs had made operations unsustainable.
The strike paralysed transport services in major towns, including Nairobi, Mombasa, Kitengela and Kisii, raising fears of supply chain disruptions, especially in the coastal port city of Mombasa.
Kenya’s Finance minister John Mbadi said the government was planning talks with transport operators in an effort to resolve the crisis, adding that the current fuel prices were already subsidised.
Meanwhile, many Kenyans expressed frustration over the soaring cost of living, saying rising transport fares and food prices had placed households under growing financial pressure.
