NAIROBI: Kenya's public transport system was paralysed on Monday, when protesters barricaded roads over fuel price hikes triggered by the Middle East war. One of many African countries dependent on fuel imports from the Gulf, Kenya has been heavily hit by Iran's effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of the world's oil normally passes.
Protesters barricaded roads and lit bonfires on the outskirts of the capital, Nairobi, early on Monday and tried to stop cars and "boda boda" motorbikes. The usual congestion in Nairobi's central business district was missing, with schools closed and events cancelled. Thousands of commuters across the country were stranded after privately owned "matatu" minibuses, Kenya's main form of public transport, went on strike. The protests spread to other major towns, including Mombasa, Nakuru, Eldoret and Nyeri.
"The strike is completely uncalled for, even though the prices of petroleum products have risen," said treasury and economic planning minister John Mbadi. "This is a war that we have not caused," he told the NTV broadcaster. Critics argue that Kenya has high taxes on fuel that could be reduced, although it is also reliant on them to service high levels of debt and a strained budget. "The price of fuel has gone up to an unsustainable level, (with) a ripple effect on the economy," he said, calling on the government to cushion the blow. — AFP
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