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Kenya’s fuel shortage and the ensuing countrywide pain have thrust many private oil firms into the public limelight for all the wrong reasons.

They have been castigated for creating an artificial shortage to force the government to release pending fuel subsidies. However, the silence from the State-owned National Oil Corporation of Kenya (Nock) has been so loud for everyone to notice.

Even as acting Petroleum Cabinet Secretary Dr Monica Juma called a media briefing to shed light on the fuel crisis, questions touching on Nock were given a wide berth.

It was not lost that they avoided talking about Nock yet among the functions of the firm is to help stabilise prices of petroleum products in the country, however, this has not been possible due to mismanagement that has left the corporation a shell.

Therefore, as the leaders mull solutions to avoid a repeat of the crisis, the conversation should revolve around a long-lasting solution for the sector which must include how to solve problems around Nock and the industry at large.

Granted, the government is considering the possibility of Nock tendering for 30 per cent of Kenya’s monthly fuel imports to reduce dependency on independent oil marketers Nock must put the house in order. Otherwise, consumers will continue to be at the mercy of private players with selfish interests. Why is it the only loss-making oil firm? 

Being such an important utility in Kenya’s economy given its role as a stabiliser of prices, it is about time that the buck stops with the board and the management.

In the past, audits by the Auditor General have revealed that an annual governance audit was not undertaken during the year under review. It also unveiled the theft of millions of litres of fuel estimated at Sh2.27 billion in a year. This shows where the problem is and they can easily be sealed.

Therefore, even as the Energy ministry mulls building a strategic national petroleum reserve as part of a long-term plan to avert future fuel crises, the struggling corporation must check the haemorrhaging of cash the corporation.

Other internal inefficiencies as well as slow execution which affect competitiveness and staff morale must also be sorted out.

Otherwise, it is about time Kenyans started asking the question of whether it is necessary to have Nock when it is just gobbling up taxpayers’ money without offering much help.