NAIROBI, Kenya — Energy Cabinet Secretary Opiyo Wandayi has denied claims of a fuel shortage in the country, telling Parliament that any supply disruptions are the result of actions by oil market players.
Appearing before the National Assembly’s Energy Committee after missing a previous summons, Wandayi said Kenya has adequate fuel stocks and dismissed concerns of a systemic supply crisis.
“There is no shortage of fuel in the country. If there is any shortage, it has been caused by oil market players,” he told lawmakers.
The CS was responding to mounting scrutiny over a controversial petroleum consignment imported outside the government-to-government (G-to-G) framework, which has triggered investigations and high-level exits within the energy sector.
Wandayi told the committee that the procurement of the disputed consignment was initiated at the technical level and approved by the then Principal Secretary, Mohamed Liban.
“Procurement of the consignment was recommended by a technical committee. The PS approved it in his wisdom. On March 30, it emerged that this consignment came out of G-to-G, and I moved swiftly and briefed the President,” he said.
According to Wandayi, President William Ruto directed that a second vessel linked to the same arrangement be stopped to prevent further deviation from established procurement procedures.
The CS emphasised that the decision to import fuel outside the G-to-G framework should have required higher-level approval, which, he said, was not sought from his office.
“Such a deviation should require a higher approval. The approval of the CS was not sought. If it did, I would have escalated to the President,” he told the committee.
The appearance comes amid intensified parliamentary scrutiny, with MPs seeking accountability over the importation of an estimated 60,000 metric tonnes of super petrol and possible lapses in regulatory oversight.
Lawmakers are also probing whether proper quality assurance protocols were followed and whether the alleged substandard fuel reached consumers.
