Unrest builds up as Saudis vent rage at government price hikes
Saudi Arabians have taken to the social networking services, venting their anger at the government for hiking domestic gas prices and introducing value-added tax (VAT).
London-based Al-Quds Al-Arabi paper said on Sunday that furious Saudi citizens had created a “salary is not enough” hashtag on Twitter.
According to various media outlets, the kingdom almost doubled gasoline prices and introduced a five-percent VAT on most goods and services on Monday.
The paper said the prices of thousands of goods and services had soared, including gasoline prices which had been hiked 82-126 percent.
The “salary is not enough” hashtag has been recreated four times so far after reaching its follow limit.
Unemployed Saudis, who according to 2016 estimates comprised more than 5.1 percent of the population, have created another hashtag named “the unemployed, the forgotten.”
New footage circulated online seemed to show a Saudi citizen setting fire to a gas station in protest at the fuel price spikes.
The Arab State has been trying to diversify its economy which is reeling from falling oil prices and its costly war on Yemen. Crude prices tumbled last year after Saudi Arabia flooded the market with additional oil.
Last month, the country whose economy contracted by 0.5 in 2016 cut the government subsidy on electricity supplies for the second time in two years, leading to a sharp rise in bills.
On Sunday Saudi Arabia's Attorney General Saud al-Mojeb confirmed that 11 royals had been arrested after gathering in front of a palace in protest at government cuts of their water and electricity subsidies, Sabq paper reported. It said those arrested were transferred to the al-Ha’ir security prison south of the capital.
The protests have raged on despite King Salman’s efforts to soothe the public on Saturday by ordering a 1,000-riyal ($266) increase in monthly payments of state employees.
The payout to Saudi troops involved in the kingdom's war on Yemen was increased five times the rest of the state employees as per the order as the hugely-deadly warfare becomes more and more unpopular.
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