Thika MP Patrick Wainaina has urged the government to release the Economic Stabilization fund to cushion Kenyans from the run-away high cost of living.
Wainaina said the fund will help stabilize the prices of basic commodities and save the citizenry from hunger.
Speaking during a tour of his constituency yesterday, the MP said the Cabinet should convene and come up with measures of releasing the funds to subsidize the price of basic consumer goods and make them affordable.
“Riding on the external factors to defend the high cost of living is not enough. We need to have measures being taken to curb inflation and reduce the price of basic commodities. This will save the many Kenyans sleeping hungry,” Wainaina said.
He said few Kenyans could afford to purchase the common staple foods thus had been condemned to hunger and hopelessness.
The MP said the situation has been made unbearable as the majority of the population do not have stable income and needed government intervention to keep them moving.
He called on the government to halt undertaking development projects for some time and divert the funds to subsiding basic commodities.
The Kiambu Gubernatorial aspirant said undertaking projects to hungry people is a mockery, lamenting that most Kenyans can hardly afford a meal.
“If fast measures are not taken, then basic food prices will continue to skyrocket and life will be unbearable. It may lead to increased crime and insecurity, as well as hopelessness among the citizens,” he said.
Of late, Kenyans have complained about the high cost of living terming it unaffordable and unbearable. Of concern is the price of two kilogram fortified maize flour which went up from Sh 138 in March to Sh 147 in May and Sh 210 in June.
A packet of fresh milk also increased from an average of Sh57 in May to Sh 70 this month while a litre of cooking oil (salad) increased from Sh351 in April to Sh370 in May and 419 this month.
The situation has been compounded by poor harvests due to the recent dry weather conditions in several parts of the country. As of May, the country’s inflation rate hit 7.1 % from a 6.47 per cent in April and 5.56 per cent in March.
It is said to be driven by a combination of several factors including high world commodity prices and the depreciating exchange rate.
