Government Vows to Intensify Crackdown on Illegal LPG Trade

The government has vowed to intensify its crackdown on illegal liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) operations, warning traders involved in unlawful refilling, distribution and other illegal activities that they will face the full force of the law.
Speaking on the government’s efforts to enhance LPG safety, Energy and Petroleum Cabinet Secretary Opiyo Wandayi said regulations published on January 30, 2025, had been transmitted to Parliament and were now part of Kenyan law.
Wandayi said the ministry had been working with stakeholders to ensure compliance with the regulations, stressing that consumer safety remained the government’s top priority.
The CS also criticised former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua for allegedly targeting public officials involved in enforcing LPG regulations.
He specifically defended Acting Director General Dr Joseph Okech and retired Major Ouma, saying the officials should be allowed to discharge their duties without political interference.
“Leave our officers alone to perform their duties as diligently as they are doing currently,” Wandayi said, challenging Gachagua to raise any concerns directly with him instead of targeting individual officials.
The Cabinet Secretary warned that the government would not bow to pressure from politicians, cartels or unscrupulous traders seeking to profit from illegal LPG activities.
“We shall not succumb to any form of pressure from these unscrupulous business persons, from these illegal traders,” he said.
Wandayi further warned traders engaged in illegal LPG refilling and other unlawful operations that enforcement agencies would intensify the crackdown until full compliance was achieved.
“Anybody out there engaging in illegal LPG trade, illegal refilling of LPG cylinders, our reckoning is coming,” he said, adding that officers would pursue offenders “very vigorously.”
He maintained that the enforcement drive was aimed at protecting consumers from the dangers associated with unsafe LPG handling, illegal refilling and unregulated distribution.
The CS urged all LPG dealers to comply with the law, warning that the government would continue taking action against operators who put public safety at risk.