Azimio la Umoja leader Raila Odinga has criticized the Finance Bill 2024 saying the country will be worse if the bill is not revised drastically.
In a statement on Friday, June 8, Raila said the tax burden in the country is at its highest level since independence, but public services have largely remained on their knees.
The former Prime Minister pointed out that the Finance Bill 2024 fails the taxation dictums of predictability, simplicity, transparency, equity, administrative ease, and fairness.
He termed the bill as regressive taxation that will hit low-income earners with taxes from multiple fronts than high-income earners.
“It is worse than the one of 2023, an investment killer and a huge millstone around the necks of millions of poor Kenyans who must have hoped that the tears they shed over taxes last year would see the government lessen the tax burden in 2024,” read the statement in part.
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Raila raised concern on the cost of mobile money transfer which is set to rise from 15 percent to 20 percent and the proposed 16 percent VAT on foreign exchange transactions.
The opposition chief also highlighted the proposed taxes on bread and edible oil saying it would result in the cost of food rising.
“We see no positive result that the country which is a net importer of nearly everything can derive from the proposal to raise Import Declaration Fees from 2 percent to 3 percent. The impact is that the cost of goods will go up,” Raila stated.
The Azimio leader also hit out at the government over the proposed eco levy that proposes to levy basic products like diapers and mobile phones and the introduction of a 16 percent tax VAT on insurance and reinsurance services.
Further Raila termed the proposed 2.5 percent motor vehicle tax as punitive and unfair to car owners.
He argued that at least 40 percent of the price of cars in Kenya are taxes, vehicle owners are taxed for the number plate, fuel levy, and tyres.
“It must be remembered that the tax measures put in place last year and which led to violent protests have subjected Kenyans to a great deal of trauma but bore no fruit. The intended purpose of the 2023 tax measures were to help the government raise more revenue. Instead, the Kenya Revenue Authority consistently failed to meet targets,” said Raila.
The opposition leader warned that the tax proposal in the Finance Bill 2024 could usher the collapse of an economy that is already severely suffocated.
Raila demanded radical changes on the bill in parliament saying he will not accept the pains inflicted on Kenyans in the Finance Act 2023 to be continued into 2025.
“We equally cannot afford taxation measures whose end result is to inflict more pain on the poor who expect relief. Parliament must therefore inject very radical surgery on the outrageous proposals in the Finance Bill 2024. We will not accept the mistakes and pains inflicted on Kenyans by the Finance Act 2023 to be continued into 2025 through Finance Bill 2024,” Raila added.
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