High TV drama expected as Ruto, Raila troops battle in Finance Bill vote
President William Ruto (left) and Azimio la Umoja leader Raila Odinga.
A fresh showdown is looming today afternoon between allies of President William Ruto and Opposition leader Raila Odinga in the National Assembly over the Finance Bill 2023 that is coming up at the committee stage, where the real legislation happens.
The moment provides a chance for MPs allied to Opposition outfit Azimio la Umoja One Kenya Coalition, who were not in the House on Wednesday last week when the Bill sailed through the second reading, to redeem themselves after they were accused of abandoning the party.
The Bill seeks to raise additional revenue in taxes in the region of Sh130 billion to finance the Kenya Kwanza administration’s Sh3.6 trillion budget for the 2023/24 financial year.
Mr Odinga has been consistent that the Bill contains “punitive” taxation proposals that are detrimental to an already “overburdened taxpayer” and must therefore be defeated by “likeminded” members in the National Assembly regardless of their political party affiliation.
“It will be Kenya Kwanza strangling the people if the Bill becomes law. We have instructed our MPs and any genuine pro-people Kenya Kwanza members in the House to see the fallacy of introducing these punitive taxation measures,” Mr Odinga said.
Former Gichugu MP Ms Martha Karua, Mr Odinga’s running mate in the August 9, 2022 presidential election, has been equally vocal against the Bill and last week praised Githunguri MP Gathoni Wamuchomba (Kenya Kwanza) for going against the grain to oppose it.
“Congrats Hon Wamuchomba for your firm stand in articulating your constituents and views of a majority of Kenyans. A true representative of the people,” Ms Karua tweeted.
Wiper leader Kalonzo Musyoka, an Azimio luminary, chided President Ruto that he will soon tax the air “we breathe” in reference to the “punitive” taxation measures in the Bill.
But, despite Mr Odinga’s call, President Ruto and his deputy Rigathi Gachagua cannot wait to have the Bill passed into law.
“The MPs will be in the National Assembly on Tuesday [today]. The simple thing to do is to vote in favour of the Finance Bill,” said President Ruto even as his deputy said that Mt Kenya region, where he hails from, stands to benefit from the proposals in the Bill. “We have budgeted Sh250 billion for roads to be built,” he said.
Voting on the Bill at the committee stage shall be clause by clause, meaning the process will likely drag on till late in the night and extend to the next sitting day on Wednesday.
Yesterday, leader of minority Opiyo Wandayi (Ugunja) said Azimio will not only be relying on its troops in the House but also “well-meaning MPs from the Kenya Kwanza side “to shoot down the Bill.”
“We hope that MPs including those who had voted for the Bill last week can still see the sense of standing with Kenyans by rejecting these burdensome taxation proposals contained in the Bill. It is not too late for the MPs to save Kenyans from strangulation by the Kenya Kwanza regime,” said Mr Wandayi.
In the next financial year, which starts on July 1, 2023, the government plans to spend Sh3.6 trillion to be financed through ordinary revenue (taxes) and Appropriation in Aid.
The Budget Policy Statement (BPS) approved by the House estimates the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) will collect Sh3 trillion, including Sh2.8 trillion in ordinary revenue and Sh324 billion in Appropriation in Aid.
In the event Azimio MPs pull a fast one on their Kenya Kwanza colleagues, it will mean that the government will not have the legal mandate to collect taxes.
Mr Wandayi noted that his coalition has proposed “a raft of amendments on top of those the House Committee on Finance and National Planning has already proposed”.
But the Finance Bill is not like any other ordinary Bill. For an MP to propose amendment on the Bill, they will require the approval of the National Treasury because budget making is a negotiated process between the National Treasury on behalf of the government and the National Assembly, which has been given power over the purse by the Constitution.
Belgut MP Nelson Koech warned the Azimio MPs to prepare to be overrun, just like it happened last week.
