By Patricia Mollyne Mataga
Political Economist Billow Kerrow has warned that President William Ruto’s tax policies are likely to fail.
The former Mandera Senator argues that despite the Kenya Kwanza administration seeking to replicate the late President Mwai Kibaki’s economic successes, they have already veered off the road.
Speaking during an interview on Citizen TVs ‘The Big Question’ on Wednesday night, Kerrow said although Kibaki taxed more, most Kenyans did not feel the burden.
This, the Political Economist said, was due to the approach he took by first focusing on economic growth.
But he noted that the opposite is happening with the current regime.
“Any tax has a ripple effect on everyone. During Kibaki’s time, we reached a point where 95% of our expenditure was financed by revenues and the reason was policy,” said the former Senator.
“Shida tuko nayo hapa ni policy. What Kibaki did during his time which this government is not doing is that they focused on growing the economy first before they started looking for taxes,” he added.
He went further to point out that “Every single trip the President and his team have gone out, they have signed on a new loan.”
Ruto has been facing criticisms for his appetite of taxing Kenyans more.
But the President has brushed off the criticisms insisting that he will introduce several more taxes before his term comes to an end.
Ruto believes it’s only through taxation that the country came grow economically.Already several new taxes have been proposed under the 2024 Finance Bill.
They include the-now controversial motor vehicle tax and removal of bread and milk from zero rated items.
Several stakeholders including Insurance Association, Bankers Association and Kenya Association of Manufacturers have already expressed their reservations to various proposals.