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{
    "id": 1485410,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1485410/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 274,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Alego Usonga, ODM",
    "speaker_title": "Hon. Samuel Atandi",
    "speaker": null,
    "content": "framework of the law. According to me, this is corruption. The recommendation in the Report should have been very clear in black and white and in bold that the directors of this company should have been prosecuted. This is something that needs to be clear. We are talking about the economy having lost taxes in billions of shillings and there are Government officers who allowed this to happen. So we need to amend the recommendation to say that directors of this company together with the Government officials who assisted them in ensuring that this tax evasion is achieved be prosecuted. Secondly, I am one of the people who believe that for Kenya to attract serious investors, we need to have a framework where certain tax exemptions are granted. This is something that I believe in because I have compared the business operating environment in neighbouring countries like Uganda, Tanzania and Rwanda, and in some of those countries, if you are an investor that is coming to set up a business in a particular sector where there is no competition, you will be given tax exemptions for a year or two until your company becomes profitable. But again, if you look at the guidelines that are in law, they are very clear that first of all you need to be an investor that is going to put in about Ksh10 billion in that investment. In other words, we do not just expect briefcase investors to arrive in Kenya and be given these exemptions. I urge the Cabinet Secretary for the National Treasury and Economic Planning to invoke this particular provision to attract investors from Tanzania and Uganda. But this must be done above board because the biggest issue in this country is that many things are not being done above board. We need to ensure that as we implement the law, we put everything on the table so that discussions are very clear. One of the areas that I always feel needs to be addressed is the potential of a particular investment to rejuvenate the economy. In other words, how many jobs will that particular investment create in the economy? How much money in terms of taxes are we to get in the short term and in the long term. These are very fundamental factors that are very clear in law and the particular public officers in charge of giving exemptions are supposed to see. They should know that the company is going to propel the economy. As you are aware, recently I heard the Government of Tanzania bragging that they are taking a lot of investors from our country. This is something which we should never allow as a House. This House must ensure that we know investors exiting this economy and the reasons why they are exiting. If there are issues to do with taxation and areas where we can engage, we should advise the Cabinet Secretary for the National Treasury and Economic Planning to ensure that these things are not allowed. Investments that come into this economy are the reason Kenya is regarded as an economic powerhouse. Kenya cannot be an economic powerhouse if we continue to lose investors. Another area that we need to check is corruption. Corruption is not sustainable in the long run. It will give an investor leeway to come to the economy, but it will also block new investors from coming in. If the yardstick for giving exemptions by public officers is corruption, then it means that those who cannot offer corruption will never have a chance to come to the economy. It is the people who are going to lose in such circumstances. I wind up by saying that we need to amend this Report to ensure that the directors of this company are prosecuted. If that is done, it will be another deterrent for the future. Hon. Kawanjiku, thank you very much for this particular Motion. I believe that by speaking on the Floor of this House, every stakeholder in the country interested in investing and public officers will take note that Parliament is not interested in allowing corruption to thrive especially in areas where exemptions are important. Tax exemption is something that we need to embrace, but it must be done above board. Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker, I support."
}