HTTP 200 OK
Allow: GET, PUT, PATCH, DELETE, HEAD, OPTIONS
Content-Type: application/json
Vary: Accept
{
"id": 1268343,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1268343/?format=api",
"text_counter": 300,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Matungu, ODM",
"speaker_title": "Hon. Peter Nabulindo",
"speaker": null,
"content": " Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker, for giving me this opportunity to contribute to this good Bill. I also take this opportunity to thank the Committee that worked tirelessly up to this level that they have been able to bring this legislation to the Floor of the House. This is a very timely and important legislation in this country especially coming at this time when the Government of the day is struggling to collect taxes and rates from the public to implement its programmes. Land in this country is a very big issue because it is the basis of our economic prosperity. It is known all over Africa and East Africa that Kenyans particularly appreciate the value of land. Therefore, this legislation will go a long way in regulating land rates and help the national and county governments on how to levy tax. We are in the era where county governments strongly depend on the national Government for their revenue to run. That is not supposed to be the case. County governments are supposed to be semi-autonomous or autonomous in terms of their economies. Unfortunately, we live in a country where almost all counties, including Nairobi and Mombasa, which are big with strong economies, still depend on the national Government to run their affairs. There is need for counties to enhance, improve and regularise their tax collection. That begins with land and land rates. Hon. Temporary Speaker, county governments and the national Government should not levy rates on land that does not have proper ownership documents. The problem in this country is that most Kenyans and most of the businesses do not have proper documentation of the land to show ownership. For example, almost 60 per cent of the all schools in this country do not have ownership documents of the land on which they sit, and therefore, can neither be taxed nor pay rates. Hon. Temporary Speaker, the only way that we shall register growth in the counties is if they are able to collect enough revenue to run their affairs. We have seen in very many places that, if the Government delays to disburse funds to the counties, even for a month or two, they would go on their knees, and the governors are always crying that they want to shut down the counties. What happens to the money that the counties collect? Unfortunately, in this country, counties do not have any strong oversight. The Members of the County Assemblies (MCAs) who are supposed to oversee the governors are mostly compromised. They are weak in their oversight and when it comes to the Senate, which has the mandate from the Constitution to oversee the counties, it is even weaker. In most cases, we have seen the Senate summon some governors to come before it to answer a few questions, and they would blatantly decline, and the Senate cannot do anything about it. That shows that we have a toothless institution which is supposed to oversee a very powerful institution called the county government. The Bill also talks about the valuation process, the valuer and the regulations that go with it. The problem in Kenya is the valuation process. In most counties, valuation was done almost 10 years ago and therefore, it is difficult to get enough revenue if valuation of a certain land is that of 10 years ago. In the constituencies for example, valuation was done a long time ago. I can give you an example of Matungu Constituency. Valuation was done in 2014 and since then, no other valuation has been done. The value of an acre of land was put at Ksh400,000 but now, owners of the land are selling it at almost Ksh1 million. There is no way you can do a proper rating with valuation that is outdated. With this law, therefore, I believe we are going to have proper valuation, good valuers and we are going to get the right value of the lands that we are dealing with. As the Committee goes back to look at the views that Members have given, when they come back to the House, we expect to see good amendments. We are going to support the Bill so that we come up with a good law that is going to help the counties and the national Government to raise enough revenue from land, land-related properties and ownership in this country. The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor."
}