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{
    "id": 1082751,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1082751/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 164,
    "type": "other",
    "speaker_name": "",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": null,
    "content": "when President Kibaki came to power, first of all, for people who liked the new Government, he made a call that encouraged Kenyans to pay taxes and especially the ones who ran their own private businesses. Since it was a call that did not force anyone, there were very long queues. Everybody was going to pay something to KRA to make sure the Government was supported. I feel that one of the issues is the attitude Kenyans adopt and the willingness to pay tax. I am aware that KRA did not even have the necessary or sufficient staff or even budget. Remember how much we give them in terms of budget here. In fact, one of their projections is to be able to reach every single Kenyan to pay tax and those who are not willing, those who do not want to give unto Caesar what belongs to Caesar, some force is applied. This should also apply to the people from international companies who trade across the border. What is disappointing in this whole thing is how corruption takes place in the country and especially how some people declare very little and after that, bribes are exchanged between the KRA officers and themselves. So, even though the Committee visited parts of Kenya to assess the impact of revenue collection initiatives, I do not believe there was enough room and there will be enough time for the Committee to do every single thing. They can give guidelines on how more revenue can be collected because we have to support our Budget. One of the initiatives especially post COVID- 19 period is that of encouraging Small and Micro Enterprises (SMEs) to grow businesses. The Government needs to support the many upcoming businesses so that they can employ more people. We have many Kenyans who have lost their jobs. When the President took the initiative to reduce taxes on minimum wages, people still lost their jobs. Now with the advent of the use of ICT, many people are working from home and cutting down on costs. So, we are saying that the best way is to ensure that our Budget favours those startups and SMEs. That is what many countries which are facing a similar situation have done. So, I support Hon. Wanga but think that another visit should be funded to gather more information so that our country can produce. If you are not in production, you are not going to give returns. If you are jobless, you will not be in a position to pay taxes. We need many more Kenyans to participate."
}