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{
    "id": 601956,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/601956/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 204,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Hon. Dido",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 2749,
        "legal_name": "Col (Rtd) Ali Rasso Dido",
        "slug": "col-rtd-ali-rasso-dido"
    },
    "content": "Thank you very much, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, for giving me this opportunity. I want to join my colleagues in supporting this Bill. When we talk about taxes in any country, it is about monies individuals will surrender to the government for public use – something which people may not do willingly. For that reason, individuals who pay that money will always ask for value for money. If we want to build Kenya, we must pay taxes. Such money must be prudently appropriated. This Bill shows the progress that we are making as a country in constitution-making and crafting of our laws. This Bill is about the procedures to be followed by Kenyans and foreign investors as they comply with the tax laws. It seeks to streamline the way taxpayers will be engaging the bureaucrats who collect taxes. From what we have observed, Kenyans really want to pay taxes. This is demonstrated by the long queues at Times Tower, where people wait for hours on end to pay taxes. For that reason, it is important for us to have a flexible system of collecting taxes. It is only in Kenya where people queue to pay tax. This consumes a lot of people’s time, especially because somebody at KRA may not be willing to quickly receive the money from taxpayers. The progressive nature of this Bill is demonstrated by it attempting to open a window between the taxpayer and the bureaucrat, or executive sitting at the other end. It creates dialogue in our society. If I am not able to file my tax returns this week, I can do it next week. That kind of dialogue has been lacking in terms of individuals filing their tax returns or paying their tax remittances. As Kenyans listen to this debate, or when they come across this Bill, they may think that it is about the Kenya Association of Manufacturers (KAM), the Kenya Private Sector Alliance (KEPSA) or some big corporations. It is about each and every individual Kenyan, who must put his shilling in the national kitty, so that we can have hospitals, roads and other institutions. Without everybody giving back their fair share, we cannot build Kenya. Within this Bill there is the issue of PIN. When we put stringent rules on how to obtain PINs, then we are telling many to stay out of the tax bracket. The more individuals have PINs, the more people we put in the tax bracket, and the more effectively the country will be able to finance its Budget. In other countries, having a PIN is compulsory. It is part of how a nation identifies individuals. It is one of the areas the taxman should explain why it is putting stringent rules. They might have a good reason. The other good thing about this Bill is licensing of tax agents. It is a progressive nature of our laws to allow many points for filing tax returns. However, we must also guard against errant agents. Some of those agents may try to file incorrect returns. There is also the element of tax evasion when you have crooked agents."
}