MEDIA STATEMENT
BY THE
INKATHA FREEDOM PARTY
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IFP MEDIA
STATEMENT BY: 1st April 2008 The Inkatha Freedom Party believes that the latest petrol price hike, which will increase by a record 68 cents per litre at midnight tonight, will once again have a dire impact on the lives of urban residents and the poorest of the poor in South Africa. The latest petrol price hike will also have a dismal effect on motorists and commuters' disposable income, while food prices are set to rise again. These increases will lead to taxi and bus organisations raising their fares again. Although the fares of public transport keep on rising, the service is not getting better. The IFP believes that Government must invest more in public transport so as to make it safer and reliable. The record petrol price hike also follows shortly after South Africans were hit by a rise in the price of electricity, while paraffin is now more expensive than it has ever been. There are some South Africans who already can't afford the very basic daily commodities and this increase while surely drive more of South Africa's population to live below the bread line. The Inkatha Freedom Party believes that the ever-rising price of fuel has now become a national crisis and we want to reiterate our call, that even though the high international price of crude oil is beyond the control of the South African Government, we feel that the time has come for Government's minerals and energy department to start exploring all ways and means to keep the price of petrol down, and it is important that we revise the formula for petrol pricing.
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