There is no gasoline oil in Asmara and even government vehicles are stranded and almost everything is in a standstill. The only market is the black market which is run by military contrabandists (called the "military mafia"), where it sells for 28-30 Nakfa.  Government officials who have to travel long distance, mostly for social events like marriages of family members and colleagues, have to buy gasoline in the black market—from the military mafia, their own colleagues.
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The divide between the have and have-nots is increasing exponentially. 

In this regard, it has been learnt that the late “Civil General” Samson, who was killed in a shootout with government security officers in the matter of the shooting of Colonel Simon, had, as a gesture of goodwill, bought his friend General Wuchu furniture worth 300,000 Nakfa from the Ideal Home Furniture Store at Warsay St,  in the posh neighborhood of Tiravolo.  The furniture is for the villa: General Wuchu, along with every senior government and favored party official, recently “bought” a villa in Asmara. The government is still "investigating" the assassination attempt on Colonel Simon.

The Sinking of the Fishing Industry 

Among many industries that are crumbling as a result of PFDJ mismanagement is the fishing industry—which was supposed to, depending on the annual whims of the government, either going to be a guarantor of food security, or, as export, a source of hard currency, or both. 

The Eritrean regime (with massive help from the never-publicized donors) developed the Eritrean harbor.  Processing plants with names like Erifish and Leda were formed, along with warehouses and ice plants. 

For nearly a year, Eritrea has not exported any fish to speak of.    

The basic problem with the fishing industry is the high cost of gasoline, a creation of PFDJ’s (People's Front for Democracy & Justice, i.e. the ruling party) command economy. Consequently, fish is selling at a steep discount in Eritrea at 50 Nakfa per kilo—which is still unaffordable to many Eritreans.   

“Is Tesseney Still A Territory of Eritrea?” 

Car tires have also become extinct in Eritrea--except in Tesseney, a town bordering Sudan. According to government regulations, no foreign manufactured goods can leave Tesseney, at least legally. Therefore, people who want to buy new tires for their cars leave from Asmara to Tesseney and, to evade the restriction and roadblocks, fix the new tires they purchased in their cars and come back to Asmara.  

At a town hall (mimihidar) meeting, an elderly man asked the government official who was running the meeting, “Is Tesseney still a territory of Eritrea?”  When the dumbfounded chairman answered in the affirmative, the elderly man asked, “Then, how come goods that are sold in the open market in Teseney are forbidden to move to Agordat, Keren or Asmara? This practice should be stopped.” All the participants applauded and the chairperson responded that he does not have a definite answer and he would “ask the responsible authorities.”   

The restriction is not limited to manufactured goods like tires, DVDs, CD players and wristwatches.  Even coffee, Taf, Meshela cannot be transported from Tesseney to any other part of Eritrea. Meshela dma menqesaqesi delya [even grain requires a moving permit] is how residents of Asmara joke about it. 

Pepper (berebere), which was 60-80 Nakfa per kilo as recently as three months ago, has sky rocketed to 180.00 Nakfa per kilo. This is not just due to the restriction of movement of goods but also because Afhimbol (the parastatal agricultural giant) has been ordered to stop planting pepper and concentrate on tomatoes, the raw materials for the tomato paste factory at Alebu.    

The tomato paste factory, like the brewery and the fishing sector, is supposed to be the foundation of Eritrea’s next major export economy. 

Fees & Coupons 

Command economies require coupons and the Eritrean regime has been demanding them at a furious rate.  Beginning with kindergarten, every school year, students are required to have a school coupon. There are coupons required for powers of attorney, trade license, birth certificates, butane gas, etc. Recently, the government added Bollo claudo—annual car registration—targeting the Eritrean tourists.  Many Diaspora Eritreans who own “vacation cars” in Eritrea will not be able to register their cars unless their annual 2% income tax is current.  

Ban On Travel 

The Immigration office has a new directive limiting the movement of professionals.  Under the new directive, civil engineers, technicians, electronic experts, consultants and other professionals cannot get an exit visa for official or business-related trips.   

This will increase opportunities for clandestine travel which is managed by the military mafia.  

The going rate for the smugglers to help an Eritrean cross the border to Sudan or Ethiopia is 20,000 Nakfa (1300 USD at the official exchange rate.)  The cash is paid after the smuggled Eritrean sends a coded message from Ethiopia or Sudan to his family in Eritrea. 

Eritreans of more modest means can buy from the military mafia a moving permit (meqesaqesi) for 7,000 nakfa and provide a relief to a family member stuck in the mandatory conscription. 

Ban Not Applicable 

The travel ban does not apply to the family members of Isaias Afwerki and whoever is within the inner circle of Isaias Afwerki at any given time. The much-advertised claim that “even the president’s son is not exempt from national service” is manifestly false—unless vacationing in Italy and the United States is part of the national service.

The regime knows that the people will accept hardship if they believe that it is applied to all without exception.  But the brazen ways by which the military mafia are flaunting their questionably-earned wealth; the in-your-face corruption, and the annual requests for sacrifices while the elite live a life of luxury and while the well-connected do not have to obey the rules, are undermining its demands for sacrifice.