Pastor terms the Kenya Kwanza MPs ‘failures’ and urged Kenyans to dump them in the next elections
The National Council of Churches of Kenya (NCCK) has criticised MPs from the Mt Kenya area for admitting that they did not grasp certain aspects of the Finance Act, 2023.
The Rev Patrick Kimathi, head of the NCCK Nyeri County, has labelled the Kenya Kwanza leaders as ‘failures’ and advised Kenyans to vote carefully in the upcoming elections.
“It is a major concern for us when the Members of Parliament in our areas come out to confess that they passed the Finance Act, 2023, without reading it,” he said.
Kimathi spoke at the ACK Mt Kenya West Hotel in Nyeri town during the election of NCCK county officials.
“We elected them to review and pass laws, and this confession means they have failed in their main duty. This is something that we will encourage voters to consider in future elections,” he said.
MPs who voted unanimously to enact the Act are now facing criticism after reports that the new rule is about to knock the avocado sub-sector to its knees.
Some MPs, however, have stated that the Act does not seek to make Kenyans’ life tougher.
Molo MP Kuria Kimani, who also chairs the National Assembly Finance and Planning Committee, accused the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) of misinterpreting some articles.
“I want to tell KRA that I understand every clause of that legislation because I was the one who led my fellow MPs in endorsing it in Parliament. There is no proposal in the Finance Act meant to impose tax on our avocado farmers,” Kuria said on Wednesday.
“There is only a requirement for farmers to register on e-TIMS (electronic Tax Invoice Management System). The aim is to net unscrupulous traders who have been importing avocado into the country and pretending to be local farmers to evade taxation,” he added.
Gatanga MP Edward Muriu encouraged the government not to impose agricultural taxes, noting that it would cause farmers to suffer.
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Pastor terms the Kenya Kwanza MPs ‘failures’ and urged Kenyans to dump them in the next elections
