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Basseterre, St. Kitts — The pressure is reaching a breaking point.

With fuel prices now surging to a staggering EC $19.60 per gallon and threatening to cross the unthinkable $20 threshold, a national outcry is erupting — demanding that Prime Minister Dr. Terrance Drew immediately remove taxes on fuel to bring urgent relief to a country buckling under economic strain.

The situation has spiraled from concern to crisis.

Ferry operators are suspending services. Transportation costs are climbing. Businesses are scaling back. Families are being squeezed to the edge. And yet — despite the worsening emergency — no decisive relief measures have been announced.

But the path forward is not unknown.

It has already been done.

In May 2022, under the leadership of former Prime Minister Dr. Timothy Harris and the Team Unity Government, swift and targeted action was taken to cushion the blow of rising global fuel prices. The administration slashed the Excise Tax on fuel from $2.25 per gallon to $0.95, extended a Fuel Subsidy Programme, and implemented a suite of bold interventions designed to protect consumers and stabilize the economy.

It worked.

Fuel prices were moderated. Public transportation remained affordable. And most importantly — people felt relief.

Today, that same decisive leadership is being demanded again.

Instead, the current administration stands accused of policy paralysis in the face of a deepening crisis.

Social activist Dr. McCarta Browne has already sounded the alarm, calling on the government to cap fuel prices and realign national priorities, warning that the situation has escalated to a matter of national security.

His call is now being echoed across the Federation.

The argument is simple — and compelling:

If fuel taxes were reduced before to protect the people…
why not now?

If subsidies were extended before to stabilize the economy…
why not now?

If leadership acted decisively before in a time of crisis…
what is preventing action today?

The silence is no longer just concerning — it is becoming indefensible.

At nearly $20 per gallon, fuel is no longer just a commodity — it is a trigger. A trigger for higher food prices, higher transport costs, higher utility bills, and a rapidly escalating cost-of-living crisis that threatens every household in the Federation.

The longer the delay, the deeper the damage.

This is not a theoretical debate. This is not political theater.

This is survival.

The nation is now issuing a clear and urgent call:

Remove the fuel taxes. Implement subsidies. Act now.

Because as history has already shown — when leadership steps up, relief is possible.

And as the crisis intensifies, one question continues to echo across St. Kitts and Nevis:

If it was done before to protect the people — why is it not being done now?