National Assembly Finance Committee Chairperson Kuria Kimani has addressed proposals from a section of Kenyans over the rejection of the entire Finance Bill, 2024.
Speaking during the ongoing public participation of the Bill, the MP noted rejecting the bill would pose serious constitutional challenges to the government.
For starters, he noted that President William Ruto's administration would be forced to close all government offices as there would be no budget to fund the activities.
He explained that the move would therefore be detrimental given that Kenyans have to get services from various government agencies daily.
Unlike in the past, he noted that the 2010 Constitution lays the importance of the Bill in financing any budget process. Simply put, there cannot be any budget without the Finance Bill.
"Some Kenyans are saying that they do not like the Finance Bill and that it should be rejected in its totality. The consequence of that is that it will put a constitutional halt to the budget process.
"That means that as of July 1, there will be no budget for any State Department or for the country and that means that the country will come to a standstill. That would mean that the government will totally close," he stated.
Therefore, he expressed that Parliament could only amend various tax proposals, further asking Kenyans to give their opinions on the tax proposals that are contained in the Bill.
Some of the tax measures that have been proposed in the Bill include the 2.5 per cent Motor Vehicle Tax and the introduction of the Eco Levy.
Already, various businesses and Kenyans have raised concerns over the tax proposals which are projected to raise the cost of living significantly.
Among the basic commodities that could be affected by the proposals include cooking oil, bread and diapers.
