CAIRO – Here’s a unique way to protest a high electricity bill.
An Egyptian television newsman appeared on air wearing a giant envelope covered with utility bills. Only Gaber al-Qarmouty was not just complaining about the price spike in his own bill. He was highlighting his nation’s collective anger.
“The issue is not just about the electricity bill, it is actually water and gas too,” Qarmouty told his ONTV audience, according to a translation by the BBC. “I do not want to incite against the state, but I must say there is a crisis regarding the electricity bills, we’re really feeling the pinch.”
With its economy struggling, the Egyptian government is gradually increasing utilities subsidies over the next five years. But already, many Egyptians are vocally complaining about the higher costs, with some complaining on social media that their bills have doubled or even tripled in the past few months. One local daily, Al-Misry al-Youm, published several examples of people’s bills more than doubling from February to March. And other Egyptians have launched an online campaign called “catch a bill” where they are posting their utility bills on Facebook.
“Gas, electricity and water bills now cost more than renting a flat,” one person wrote on Twitter in Arabic, according to a translation by the BBC.
The outrage over utility bills is the latest sign of growing frustration with President Abdel Fatah al-Sissi’s government, which has jailed thousands of Islamists and targeted secular intellectuals, placing curbs on freedom of expression. With tourism levels declining and food prices rising, Sissi’s promises to revive Egypt’s economy have not materialized.
In recent days, lawmakers have reacted to the growing public outcry by vowing to take action on the utility bill price spikes. One parliamentarian, Roda el Farag John Talaat, wrote on his Facebook page that he plans to submit a petition in parliament to force the government to explain why the prices have soared, adding that some people’s bill have gone up 10 fold.
“It is not acceptable to make life more difficult for citizens,” Talaat wrote.
