CS Rotich smartly safeguards royalties interests at the expense of Mwananchi

Photo;CS Henry Rotich

More untold facts of the Kenyan budget are now being exposed. The entire budget which is the highest budget in the whole of the entire East African region is under the hands of the taxpayers.

The wealthy,rich and royalty class have all been spared and the burden left for the caterers, security guards, gamblers and bodaboda operators.

CS Henry Rotich announced the expansion of tax bracket in the country which means more Kenyans are being forced into the tax payers pool.

Treasury increased the rates of excise duty on cigarettes, wines and alcoholic spirits by 15 per cent. This means a bottle of wine and a packet of cigarette will now cost at least Sh18 and Sh8 more, respectively.

After the Sh18 adjustment, the total excise duty on a 750ml bottle of wine will now be Sh136 while duty on a bottle of whisky will go up by Sh24 to Sh182 for a similar bottle. Bigger quantities will attract more. The excise duty on a packet of 20 cigarettes will increase by Sh8 to Sh61 per packet.

In a smart move, CS Henry Rotich protected the interests of the royalty in the community at the expense of mwananchi. CS Rotich protected banks and owners of capital, and shielded exporters, government suppliers, among other interest groups that run the economy.

Treasury also imposed withholding taxes on people who offer security, cleaning and fumigation, and catering services outside hotel premises, as well as transporters of goods, excluding air transport services, sales promotion, marketing and advertising services.

Mr Rotich saw it as a positive measure, especially for corporate entities, whom, he said, will have a chance to “restructure their operations for efficiency and market penetration” as a result of the higher tax.

 

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