Nyaribari Chache Member of Parlaiment Zaheer Jhanda on Saturday, December 16, encountered a hostile reaction after making remarks on the current fuel prices.
Jhanda who was speaking during a fundraiser in Kisii County where President William Ruto was the chief guest said that the President did not have any role in the state of prices in the fuel market.
As such, he asked those pressuring Ruto on fuel prices to ease the pressure on the president.
“There are many factors contributing to the high prices of fuel,” he said as the crowd jeered him.
“We must say the truth. That is the truth. Even if we make noise the President is not the one responsible for the high prices.”
Zaheer’s hard time in convincing Kisii residents
Jhanda was making the remarks in response to a speech made by Kitutu Chache MP Antony Kibagendi requesting the President to address the high prices.
In his speech, Kibagendi requested the President to further lower the prices of fuel to the region of Ksh150.
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According to the Kitutu Chache legislator, the current prices set by the government were yet to be felt on the ground despite the recent drop.
“We are requesting you to lower the price of fuel to reduce from the Ksh200 to Ksh150 to benefit all people,” he said.
The incident came two days after the Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority (EPRA) released fuel price reviews for the period December 14 and January 15.
Also Read: EPRA Reduces Fuel Prices for December-January Cycle
In the review report released on Thursday, December 14, EPRA reduced the prices of petrol by Ksh5 despite expectations by some Kenyans in light of the reduced global oil prices.
Zaheer Jhanda faces tough times in his own county
Despite his win in the 2022 elections, Jhanda has since then had moments to forget in the hands of Kisii County residents.
In one encounter during the Azimio-led anti-government protests in June. the first time MP was heckled and chased away after attempting to calm down a group of rioters in Kisii Town.
Jhanda won the Nayaribari Chache seat on a United Democratic Alliance party (UDA) ticket with 31,684 votes after wading off competition from Richard Tong’i of Jubilee who had managed to get 10,039 votes.