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{
    "id": 1216499,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1216499/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 256,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Mandago",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 13577,
        "legal_name": "Kiplagat Jackson Mandago",
        "slug": "kiplagat-jackson-mandago"
    },
    "content": "Counties have continued to withstand the worst of the failure to release their equitable share of resources timely. For the KRA to close the accounts of the Nyamira County Assembly is not only unfair, but irrational. I say this because KRA is tasked with the responsibility of collecting taxes, and revenue, and submitting them to the National Treasury for onward disbursement to counties and the national Government. Not only has the KRA closed the accounts of Nyamira County, but it has also had another practice where when there is a delay in the release of salaries, and staff of county governments have gone without salaries for three months. KRA levies a penalty on accrued PAYE for mistakes that were committed by the National Treasury. The KRA is an agency of the National Treasury. They should not blame county governments. The Senate must think of ways of amending the Public Finance Management Act (2012) Act and the Finance Act, so that funds meant for counties are disbursed before any other funds are sent to any other national Government. It is really unfortunate that a county can pay a levy of almost Kshs100 million or Kshs200 million on account of delayed remittances of PAYE when there have been serious delays in disbursement to counties. The Senate will have to look into this matter. I agree with Sen. Omogeni that KRA should only appear before this House. When the KRA appears before this House, it should be in a Committee of the Whole because there are a myriad of issues that we need to discuss with them which touch on counties. Mr. Speaker, Sir, the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) and the KRA are all agencies of the national Government. It is not lost on the National Treasury, which has appointed the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) as their agent of collection of taxes and the CBK as the holder of the accounts of the county government. There is no way KRA will persuade us that they do not know whether they have received the money for Nyamira County. To the extent that they are acting on behalf of KRA to close their accounts and freeze all the funds that are coming, that should have gone to the County Assembly of Nyamira. Mr. Speaker, Sir, we urge the Committee that will handle this matter to take it seriously. As a House, we would like to have a session with the KRA. On the matter that has been raised by Sen. Crystal Asige about Persons with Disabilities (PWDs) and the exemptions they have been having, KRA must come out clearly on the fate of the PWDs on matters exemption. In case KRA is not aware, in this country, the PWDs are already disadvantaged even when it comes to treatment or getting assisting devices. The only assessment center that is used to determine the kind of support PWDs need is only one at the Kenya Institute of Special Education (KISE). It is also simultaneously used for training and is not sufficient. Therefore, they lack the capacity. The PWDs are already disadvantaged. As a nation, we cannot afford to disadvantage them further. No matter the tough economic times we are in, we cannot go to that level. KRA can think of other better measures. There was a ruling from the Supreme Court that there are some associations that can be allowed in this country. Probably, KRA can think of how they can raise revenue from those kinds of associations instead of going for PWDs."
}