Did you know that there exists a law that exempted the Kenyatta and Moi families from paying tax on inherited land?
A debate ensued online on Monday, January 30 as to why the late Presidents Jomo Kenyatta and Daniel Moi had a law gazetted exempting them from paying estate inheritance tax.
According to the Estate Duty Act Cap 483 of 1963, whenever any person dies after the commencement of this Act, a tax known as estate duty shall, save as is hereinafter provided, be levied and paid on;
(a) all property of which the deceased was at the time of his death competent to dispose;
(b) all property in which the deceased or any other person had an interest ceasing upon the death of the deceased;
However, under section 7(3), it states that;
This section shall not apply to His Excellency Mzee Jomo Kenyatta, nor to His Excellency Daniel Toroitich arap Moi
Speaking to Kenyans.co.ke lawyer Apollo Mboya revealed that the families cannot be held to pay the tax as demanded.
“It will be a tough ask because what if the estate has changed hands or transferred to other parties or demarcated over a period of time?” he paused.
Mboya further stated that for the families to pay tax on the estates, the gazette notice had to be cancelled.
“They will be acting in retrospect if they impose on the families. They will have to appeal for the notice to be cancelled after which the families will start to pay from the period in which the gazette notice was cancelled,”
Mboya observed that this was only politics at play and that the government should focus on the reports from the Office of the Director of Prosecution on individuals that have evaded tax.
Equally, lawyer Charles Kanjama disclosed that; "Any gazetted tax exemptions under either the Income Tax, VAT or Customs, can easily be reversed by the Cabinet Secretary if no longer appropriate,"
Recently the country has been involved in the debate on individuals that are evading tax payments.
President William Ruto on Monday, January 30 accused Azimio Leader Raila Odinga and his allies of leading demonstrations to avert paying taxes.
In a direct message to the opposition under Odinga's leadership, the President stated that no amount of resistance including the holding of rallies would change his stand on the directive.
"Even if they sponsor demonstrations so that they don't pay taxes, I want to promise them, they will pay tax. There is no more exception," Ruto affirmed.
