Busia Senator Okiya Omtatah has called out the Kenya Kwanza government over the increase of the Road Maintenance Levy Fund from Ksh18 to Ksh25, despite noting the views of members of the public against the move.
Taking to his X handle on Monday, July 15, 2024, Omtatah criticized the government for double-speak, noting that public resources were spent on public participation in various parts of the country. Yet, their views and submissions were not considered.
“KK government should stop this madness and obsession of lying to the people of the Sovereign Republic of Kenya. Road Maintenance Levy Fund (RMLF) has been raised from Sh18 to Sh25 as reflected in the July to August EPRA fuel price. Why did we then spend public funds on public participation,” the senator inquired.
On Sunday, July 14, the Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority (EPRA) announced the increase of the Road Maintenance Levy to Ksh25 per litre of petrol or diesel despite the then Roads and Transport Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen promising to explore other ways of financing the fund.
Roads Board public participation
After a public participation forum on July 8, 2024, Murkomen said the fund had a deficit of Ksh78 billion which was projected to hit Ksh315 billion in the Financial Year 2028/2029 if the current trend persists.
The CS noted that the Road Maintenance Levy of Ksh18 per litre of diesel and petrol, which has been in place for the last eight years, would need a review if the deficit is to be plugged.
“From the views we have received, many Kenyans are worried that an increase in the levy will result in a rise in the cost of living. With this in mind, we will analyse the reports received on email and social media platforms as well as the submissions made today, and come up with a decision that corresponds with the recommendations from the public,” Murkomen said.
However, Murkomen observed that the view of most Kenyans was that the levy should remain at Ksh18 per litre of diesel or petrol, as any increase would directly impact the cost of living.
“We will explore ways of getting the resources we need to maintain roads, as expressed by Kenyans in their numbers, without raising the cost of living through an increase in petroleum prices,” Murkomen noted at the time.
On Sunday, July 14, 2024, however, EPRA reduced the retailing cost of Petrol by Ksh1 and diesel by Ksh1.50 in their latest review. They attributed the reduction to a decrease in the landing cost of petroleum products at the port of Mombasa.
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