The government blames the shortage on rumors and corruption, but the opposition says the government has caused the shortage in order to limit the amount of people who can make it to the mass demonstrations planned for the weekend where Egyptians will be demonstrating to demand the resignation of President Mohammed Morsi. The government says the shortages are a result of nervous hoarding and black market diversions, and says that people have been stocking up on staples ahead of the protests. A Cairo taxi driver, Ramy Samir, told Petroleum Africa that a contact phoned him on June 25 to ask if he needed fuel and then instructed Samir to a particular place. Samir said, “I was able to fill up my tank in only 15 minutes although I purchased the fuel ‘under the table.’” While fuel shortages have been ongoing (on and off) for the better part of the year, the situation is now spreading to other areas of the country. Just two weeks ago it was related to Petroleum Africa that the tourist city of Hurghada suffered fuel shortages as well causing travel delays. The fuel shortages along with the rise in food prices, rolling black outs, and water outages are stirring up the ire of Egypt’s citizens. With the Holy month of Ramadan approaching tempers could grow short if the protests, originally scheduled for June 30, last longer
Posted on: Sat, 29 Jun 2013 15:24:22 +0000
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