By Kepher Otieno - Reporter
Kenya, 18 May 2026 - Kenya’s deepening fuel crisis has erupted into a full-blown political headache for President William Ruto, with mounting pressure on Parliament to urgently reconvene as a nationwide matatu strike unleashes chaos across the public transport sector and intensifies public anger over the soaring cost of living.
Gem MP Elisha Odhiambo, has broken ranks with the usual parliamentary silence to demand the immediate recall of the National Assembly for an emergency review of punitive fuel taxation laws. In sharply worded remarks, the Gem MP argued that the crisis gripping the country was born not in the streets but inside Parliament itself.
“The solution lies in Parliament because Parliament passed those laws,” Odhiambo declared, in what appeared to be a thinly veiled rebuke of legislators now scrambling to distance themselves from a crisis they helped create.
His intervention exposes widening political anxiety within the Kenya Kwanza establishment as the fuel backlash morphs from an economic grievance into a volatile national issue with potentially dangerous political consequences.
The strike by matatu operators has paralysed transport networks in several regions, while commuters are being battered by brutal fare increases that now threaten to choke local commerce and household survival alike.
Odhiambo reserved particular criticism for leaders engaging in what he described as political theatrics. He challenged Ndindi Nyoro to stop pursuing “cheap popularity” and instead table legislative amendments targeting VAT and fuel levies that have sharply inflated pump prices.
The lawmaker’s remarks reveal a growing fault line within the political class, where MPs are increasingly under pressure to explain why Parliament approved finance measures that ordinary Kenyans now blame for their economic suffering.
On the ground, the impact is savage. In Siaya County, the transport sector has virtually ground to a halt following a coordinated two-day strike by operators who insist survival now depends on permanent fare increases.
The Siaya PSV Union unveiled sweeping hikes across key routes, with fares from Siaya to Nairobi soaring from KSh 1,000 to KSh 1,500 in a move likely to trigger wider inflationary pressure.
More from Kenya
Hillary Omondi a rider and trader painted a bleak picture of desperation within the sector.
Operators, he said, had been “forced” into the painful decision by relentless fuel price increases and an unforgiving economic climate. His counterpart, Gabriel Otieno Osinde, warned that transport businesses were being “squeezed” to the brink of collapse.
The political danger for government lies not merely in the rising fares, but in the growing perception that the state is losing touch with ordinary citizens. Local fuel dealer Nyaloka captured the public mood with a stark warning that the crisis is now threatening food security itself.
“If fuel goes up, life becomes expensive,” he lamented, directly appealing to President Ruto to recognise the suffering of the very voters who swept him to power.
For workers like matatu driver Calvin Odhiambo, the strike is no abstract policy debate. It is an immediate economic catastrophe. Every parked vehicle means another day without income in an economy already suffocating under mounting pressure.
As the transport paralysis spreads, attention now turns to Parliament and whether the political establishment will act swiftly enough to defuse public fury before the fuel crisis mutates into a broader revolt against the government’s economic agenda.
Parliament Under Pressure as Fuel Fury Sparks Matatu Revolt
Elisha Omondi joins Ndindi Nyoro call for Parliament to be recalled from recess to address the issue of escalating fuel prices and high cost of living