Put the national interest above partisan pursuits

At Independence 60 years ago, a proud people emerging from colonial oppression and exploitation were upbeat about future success.

The leaders knew that it would not be easy as the new country faced huge challenges but were determined to tackle them and enable Kenyans to lead a dignified life after breaking the chains of British colonial subjugation and attaining self-rule.

Yesterday, as President William Ruto led the first Madaraka Day celebrations at the helm of the nation, he and his team appeared convinced that they are on the right path to deliver prosperity.

While there has been a countrywide outcry about the high cost of living and proposed taxation that could worsen things, the President did not seem ready to listen to what others were saying. His deputy, Rigathi Gachagua, had set the tone for the key message by declaring that Kenyans support the tax proposals and other measures that have proved quite unpopular. He did not explain how he arrived at the verdict.

The Finance Bill 2023, which has been widely dissected by the Opposition and also economic experts, has been revealed to contain proposals that will be painful to implement. However, the President made it clear that he is determined to push them through even as confrontations with his critics loom. 

This should, ideally, be a day during which Kenyans sit back and celebrate as they reflect on their achievements in the six decades of self-rule and review the obstacles ahead and how they should be dismantled.

It certainly calls for national unity. However, the country is being set up for a bitter conflict, owing to the hardline stances of the leaders in government and their opposition rivals. This does not augur well for the country.

But on a positive note, the President unveiled the second phase of the Hustler Fund, targeting women’s groups and cooperative savings and credit societies (saccos).

The Group Micro Enterprise Loan will offer between Sh20,000 and Sh1 million. According to the President, the first phase of the revolving fund enabled Kenyans to borrow nearly Sh30 billion and they have so far repaid Sh19.7 billion, which is laudable. Some seven million of the borrowers are repeat customers.

Increasingly unpopular bill

President Ruto wants Kenyans to embrace the increasingly unpopular Financial Bill 2023, which contains the Housing Fund. People earning Sh200,000 a month will pay Sh2,500, which the President believes is a small worthy sacrifice to help create employment for millions of jobless youth. He sees it as a “worthwhile contribution to make for the greater good”.

The government claims that the affordable housing programme will create a million jobs for the youth. It will also support the local construction industry and the Jua Kali sector and stimulate productivity by creating a market for the manufacturing of building materials.

It is highly unlikely that this will placate those opposed to being forced to contribute to the housing fund, and who may already have a house or even several homes. It is that element of coercion that does not sit well with the critics of the levy.

Dr Ruto’s Madaraka Day package also had some goodies—including a commitment to deliver universal health coverage (UHC) to enable Kenyans to access affordable quality healthcare.

But the pledge comes at a time when the contracts of nearly 9,000 medics, including doctors and nurses hired by the government for UHC in 2020, and deployed to the counties have expired. Renewal of the contracts should be expedited so that the critical service is not disrupted.

Not long ago, the country witnessed violence amid anti-government protests that saw several innocent people killed and property destroyed. With the bipartisan talks mooted to resolve the political standoff now on the brink of collapse, this unilateral bid by the Ruto administration to push through its agenda is bound to add fuel to the crisis.

Already, the Former Prime Minister Raila Odinga-led Azimio la Umoja One Kenya Coalition Party has denounced the Finance Bill and the housing levy, and so have several trade unions affiliated to Cotu.

The unions see the proposed levy—which many see as taxation, despite the government’s insistence to the contrary—as likely to adversely affect workers already overburdened by the prevailing high cost of living.

The politicians on both sides of the divide must put the nation’s interests above their own partisan considerations. There is absolutely no reason why they cannot sit down and thrash out their differences for the national good.