Energy and Petroleum Cabinet Secretary Opiyo Wandayi has dismissed allegations by former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua over the government’s crackdown on illegal Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) trade, accusing him of politicising a matter of public safety.
Speaking at a press conference on Wednesday, Wandayi said the Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority (EPRA), in collaboration with security agencies, was enforcing existing regulations to curb the illegal refilling and trading of LPG cylinders.
The CS also defended EPRA officials named by Gachagua and warned politicians against interfering with officers carrying out their statutory responsibilities.
“The government will not succumb to pressure from politicians and cartels hell-bent on benefiting from illicit LPG trade,” Wandayi said.
He added that authorities would continue pursuing illegal LPG operators regardless of political pressure.
“Anybody out there engaging in illegal filling of LPG cylinders, your hour of reckoning is coming,” he warned.
Wandayi also rejected Gachagua’s claim that a company had already been awarded a contract to establish a national LPG cylinder tracking system.
“For avoidance of doubt, such a process is far from completion,” he said, dismissing the claim that a company had already been contracted to undertake the tracking of gas cylinders.
“The people who are advising Gachagua should do a better job,” Wandayi added.
The CS maintained that procurement for the proposed cylinder tracking system was still ongoing and had not reached completion.
His remarks came hours after Gachagua addressed a press conference in Karen, where he claimed that more than 200,000 gas cylinders had been seized from small scale LPG traders in Nairobi, Kiambu, Kajiado and Machakos between June and October 2025.
The Democracy for Citizens Party (DCP) alleged that some of the seized cylinders were subsequently diverted to private and upcoming LPG businesses allegedly linked to politicians and state officials.
Gachagua further claimed that some of the cylinders were distributed to residents during the Ol Kalou by election. He called on the government to return the seized cylinders and compensate traders affected by the crackdown.
He also named senior EPRA officials, including Acting Director General Joseph Oketch and Deputy Director for Surveillance and Enforcement Maj. (Rtd.) Augustine Ouma, accusing them of involvement in the alleged scheme and calling for their arrest and prosecution.
Wandayi, however, maintained that the government would continue enforcing LPG regulations, saying the crackdown was aimed at protecting the public from the dangers posed by illegal LPG operations.
