“Be patient,” a presenter on one of the morning radio programs advised today, Friday, for Tunisians who are now living in the face of seemingly endless living crises. After a shortage of a number of basic foodstuffs, the country is witnessing disruptions in the supply of fuel.

For days, motorists have continued to stand in long queues outside petrol stations, hoping to fill the tanks of their cars for fear of being stranded as the unrest continues and the lack of fuel distribution.


The topic is followed up by Tunisians, and on social media, the topic of fuel has become the forerunner.

While some share information about the availability of fuel, a wave of black ridicule prevailed on most of the platforms, amid discontent and frustration with the state of affairs.

A week ago, fuel shortages began in many filling stations, with slowing imports and a decline in national supplies, which led to the accumulation of cars in rows that extended for kilometers in some places, which created traffic congestion in several areas.

Statements and conflict

Statements regarding this crisis are witnessing some conflict, as the Secretary General of the General Petroleum Corporation (Syndicate) Silwan Al-Samiri said in press statements that the quantities of fuel available in the market are enough for 10 days, waiting for the arrival of a ship next Monday loaded with additional quantities.

On the other hand, the official at the supply station in the Al-Omran neighborhood in the capital, Tawfiq Al-Daghri, told Agence France-Presse that there is fluctuation in the import of fuel, and that supplies have not arrived since Wednesday, calling on the government to find solutions to the crisis.

In statements to state television, the Minister of Industry, Mines and Energy, Naila Nuwayra Al-Qunji, said that "although there are problems in the supply of ships, the fuel is available."

"The suppliers used to give us a month or two to pay the price...but what has changed is that each supplier does not unload its shipment today until after paying the price of the previous shipment," she added, stressing at the same time that "there are financial problems" facing the government.

In this video, a convoy of police cars - escort - appears escorting a fuel truck on its way to a petrol station in Hay al-Nasr (a neighborhood of #Tunis) # Energy_Crisis #surreal


pic.twitter.com/7PyYRCVlNd

— Wejdene Bouabdallah (@tounsiahourra) October 13, 2022

Queues and waiting

Posts and photos spread on social media showing queues in many areas and neighborhoods in the capital, and some citizens expressed strong anger at the government's policy, but other states (provinces) in the country are witnessing less crowding at supply stations.

A number of Tunisians published their experiences with waiting queues, and some of them confirmed that after waiting for long hours, they are informed that the stations have run out of fuel, and this forces them to search for a place that may be far from their area, and then they are exposed to the possibility of their vehicles running out of fuel.

While a number of them preferred to ask their questions on social media about the stations from which they can be supplied, others resorted to carrying plastic containers and large bottles and queuing to replenish a few liters of fuel.

According to several statements and blogs, this crisis affected a number of employees who were forced to either be hours late for their jobs or to be absent.

resentment

While feelings of resentment and indignation pervaded most of the posts, jokes and sarcastic images of the crisis spread, as many believed that this crisis would enable those wishing to marry to find their life partner while waiting at gas stations, and others saw that the gifts most expressive of love during this period were a plastic bottle of gasoline.

In a more shorthand expression of the crisis in the country, some people traded sugar missing from the Tunisian market for liters of gasoline.

Tunisian writer and researcher Olfa Youssef criticized, in a Facebook post, the justifications made by the president's supporters, likening the crisis to the gasoline problem in France, noting that the difference lies in the fact that officials in France explain the reasons to people and try to find solutions, while in Tunisia the matter is different and the interpretations apply. It says, “Lord, an excuse is worse than a sin.”

She held that the president's followers may be "ignorant or liars".

Statements and controversy

Among the statements that sparked much controversy was the statement of the General Director of the Refining Industries Company, who said in a radio interview that the good weather had pushed Tunisians to go out more and seek fuel.

Fekhta Mehouachi, head of Tunisia's oil refinery (STIR) said that


"Good weather has lead to more people going out and therefore consume more Gas"


in Tunisia, we blame the weather for a petrol crisis, Monopoly for missing staples, and "them" for whatever is wrong… pic.twitter.com/2sbzzfWsuq

— Souhail Khmira (@SKhmira) October 13, 2022

Many believed that this statement was fabricated and untrue.

To help find a solution, the journalist writer Kamal Al-Sharni called on activists to volunteer to publish an interactive map that is updated with a field inspection of the availability of fuel at the stations, with each station giving a waiting rate from zero in the event that it is not available at all, and then from 10 minutes to an hour and a half.

He pointed out that he had to stop at 6 gas stations with "zero" waiting, that is, without petrol.

crisis and shortage

Since the outbreak of the Russian war on Ukraine, Tunisia has begun to witness a shortage of many products, such as flour, sugar, and others.

The government is engaged in advanced negotiations with the International Monetary Fund to obtain a loan of about two billion dollars, to face a severe economic crisis with the high rate of inflation and unemployment.

In addition, the country has been going through a political crisis since President Kais Saied announced on July 25, 2021 the concentration of powers in his hands, amended the constitution, and approved holding legislative elections at the end of this year to elect a new parliament with limited powers to replace the previous parliament that froze it.