The Kenya Kwanza Alliance Administration has begun gathering information to determine who has received tax exemptions in 2018. Kimani Ichung’ wa, the leader of the majority party in the National Assembly, has written to Njuguna Ndung’ u, the cabinet secretary of the National Treasury, requesting a list of the enterprises and individuals who have been granted tax exemptions.
According to Ichung’ wa, high-ranking officials in the previous administration abused the law to get tax benefits for their families, and he will be investigating this beginning in January 2018.
His words were, “Everyone is required to pay taxes, and no state authority has the right to waive taxes for the families.” He said that getting every Kenyan to pay their due amount of taxes will “eradicate impunity.”
The House has been given fourteen days to get the information, according to the Majority Leader. Moreover, he denied that the government of President William Ruto had any personal animosity toward former President Uhuru Kenyatta.
According to Ichung’ wa, the previous leadership violated Article 210 to exempt their cronies from paying taxes. The probe is not directed at any particular person, and anyone who thinks otherwise is wrong. Speaker of the House Minority Leader: “We want to verify whether the waivers are done in line with the law.”
The legislator from Kikuyu claims that not all cases of tax waiver exemption were reported to the Auditor General within the required time frame. Article 210 of the Constitution states that no tax or license charge may be imposed, waived, or amended unless provided by law.
If the law allows the waiver of such tax or charge, then a public record of the waiver and the rationale for the waiver must be kept and made available to the Auditor-General.
