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{
    "id": 1079763,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1079763/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 221,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Kisumu East, Independent",
    "speaker_title": "Hon. Shakeel Shabbir",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 140,
        "legal_name": "Ahmed Shakeel Shabbir Ahmed",
        "slug": "shakeel-shabbir"
    },
    "content": "It is sad to say that the previous Departmental Committee on Finance and the Budget and Appropriations Committee had become just extended arms of the Executive. I am now pleased to see that each of these Committees are now making a mark. I am proud to be part and parcel of this Committee and any other such Committee. I take my hat off to the Budget and Appropriations Committee too. On the omnibus Bill, this is tidying up some of the small things that we needed to sort out. On the Finance Bill, one thing that has been forgotten is food security. With food security, we need lesser or zero taxation on agriculture. However, agricultural implements and imports are now being charged with VAT. You can get cheaper chicken eggs from Uganda than here. Why? This is because our agricultural implements and seeds are more expensive and we are charged taxation when we should not. I went to file my returns the other day and I must say that the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) is doing wonders. They are doing so well. The problems we used to have are no longer as evident as before. We need to give them support. When we went to Busia, we were shocked to see how Excise and KRA officers not having even a toilet and they had to cross the border to Uganda to use the toilets. If you saw the Ugandan assets and those of Kenya, you would be shocked. We do not even have the X-ray systems that Uganda has. If we had X-ray systems on our borders, we would be collecting much more money. Hon. Mbadi told us that it is not the additional taxes but the tax systems must be more efficient, effective and representative. The tax systems we have must be ‘pro-poor’ and not ‘anti-poor’. These simple things are very important. Also the issue of beneficial interest and control is very important. What was happening is that control was not being followed with the taxation implications. Now, I just saw something on Kenya Medical Research Institute (KEMRI). One of our senior members of the society said that he had lent money to a particular company and he had no control over it. This is the sort of thing we are talking about. If you lend more money to a company, then you should control it and then pay the tax in respect of that. Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, on the issue of transfer of pricing that my Chairperson and Hon. Mbadi brought up is very important. Transfer of pricing is where these multinationals are killing us. Fries from Kentucky Fried Chicken are Kshs200. You can buy the same fries from another seller at Kshs40 and yet the same potatoes have been purchased from Molo. The situation is that we should be very particular to see how the right people are paying taxes. We want taxes for the rich. We want stamp duty. We do not want to go and hit the boda boda industry. Bodabodas are one of the most effective means of transport in this country from point A to point B. We are a Jua Kali country and that is how we will become a big industrial country. Thank you very much, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker for that time. I support."
}