Prices skyrocket as fuel and power crisis sores across Yemen

Posted in: Front Page
Written By: Mohammed al-Kibsi
Article Date: Jun 30, 2011 - 8:06:38 PM
yobserver.com

Prices of most essential food stuff, commodities and fuel raised sharply in the past few days reaching unprecedented ratio in Yemen history ever.
The price of 20 letters of vehicles gas jumped from YE Ryial 1500 up to 10,000 in the black market as vehicles queues at the gas stations extend to 2 kilometers waiting to fill their tanks with fuel.
Ahmad Hussein, a taxi driver from Sana’a said he has been queuing for the past three days so as to fill his taxi with fuel.
“I’m a taxi driver so I can’t afford 40 thousand Ryials to fill my car’s tank with fuel so I had to chose the hardest way to fill it,” said Hussein. “Queuing and waiting is the only option because I can’t convince costumers to pay five folds of the taxi tariffs,” he said.
He said he didn’t know who to blame for the fuel crisis. “The government alleges that the Joint Meeting Parties (JMP) elements have been bombing oil pipes and blocking gas and fuel tankers from reaching to the different provinces whereas the JMP has been blaming the government of creating the crisis,” said Hussein.
Simple individuals have been suffering from the gas crisis, power outage and sharp rise of prices.
The power outage has reached to the peak as the power goes out for 13 hours and comes back for only an hour.
The suffering got worse in the costal and desert provinces where the temperature reaches to 45 degrees.
Ahmad al-Kibsi from Harad district said that his 84 old father goes in comma as a result of the high temperature and humidity. “There is no power and consequently no conditioners or even cold water to drink,” said al-Kibsi. He added that the price of a kilo of ice cubes has reached to YER 4500. “Many families that have money have left the town to the mountainous towns where the temperature is cooler but we could not leave because we don’t have enough money for transportation and for renting an apartment in other towns,” said al-Kibsi.
He added that there was no power in the town as a result of diesel shortage as the town has not been connected to the national power network and is depending on a small old power station that consumes large quantities of diesel.
Fayez al-Tabib a 14 old student from Old Sana’a city said he could not study for his 9th grade certificate exam because there were no light at his home at night. “I’m afraid I might not pass my exams,” he said. His father added that their cooked food always spoils in the refrigerator because the power is off most of the day and night. “God damns those rude people who caused this crisis whoever they were,” said al-Tabib. “I’m frustrated my salary is not enough to face my family requirements of even food stuff to survive,” said the old man.
“We in Yemen had suffered from several crisis in the past as a result of civil wars, draught, natural catastrophes and other economic or political hardships however the current crisis is the worst ever,” said al-Tabib.
Ali Jarallah owner of an internet café in Sho’ob zone in Sana’a city said that he lost over YER 2 millions in the past 4 months since the start of the unrest in the country as a result of the repetitive power outage that damaged his firm’s computers and for not making business anymore. “The power keeps going off suddenly for several hours so I have no costumers anymore,” said Jar Allah. “I had to buy my own generator so as to solve the power outage problem, though the diesel prices soar up to YER 70,000 a sum that I cant make from internet users,” said Jar Allah. “I got a YER 2 million loan from CAC Bank so as to launch this internet café but now most of my computers were damaged as a result of the sudden power outages and no incomes,” he added.
Who is going to compensate me of the loses? Neither the government nor the JMP and their revolutionaries is going to pay me back,” said Jarallah.
Jabir al-Mahfadi, 35 old from Sana’a said he was sacked from his job as the company he used to work for decided to close and sacked all employees.
Samih al-Hindi a 43 old state employee said that the work in the institutions he works in is stalled as a result of power outage. “We go to work every day and stay in offices from 8 morning to 13 afternoon doing nothing other than chatting with fellows because all our work relies on computers,” said al-Mahfadi.
The government and the JMP keeps accusing each other of being behind the power outage.
The government accuses the JMP elements of keep shooting at and cutting the electricity cables that link the Marib power station to Sana’a city and other cities and towns across the country. While the JMP accuses the government of being behind the power outage and gas crisis so as to pressure on the revolutionaries to end their revolution.
The ministry of interior has announced a list of 43 saboteurs accusing them of mobbing oil pipes, blocking fuel trucks from reaching to different provinces and of shooting and cutting power cables.
The ministry announced YER 3 million bounty for any information that lead into arresting them.
The ministry of interior said that the saboteurs are affiliated to the JMP.
Saudi Arabia has announced granting Yemen 3 million barrels of crude oil so as to help in ending the gas and fuel crisis. The first and second shipment of the Saudi oil donation were downloaded at Aden refinery during the last week.