You must pay taxes, MPs told

BY WAMBUI NDONGA and LABAN WANAMBISI

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null 1/1 NAIROBI, Kenya, Jun 21 - Pressure is mounting on MPs to pay taxes with the Commission for the Implementation of the Constitution (CIC) on Tuesday insisting that all Members of Parliament must pay income tax as required by the Constitution. Speaking during a consultative forum on the gains made so far in the implementation of the Constitution, Chairperson Charles Nyachae argued that MPs and Ministers were public officials and were therefore not excluded from paying taxes after the new Constitution came into force in August last year.. Article 210 (3) of the Constitution states that public officers are not exempted from paying taxes either through the nature of the office that they hold or by the nature of their work. Mr Nyachae added that all the articles of the Constitution came into effect last August, during the promulgation ceremony, even though some of the effective laws had been constituted. "We had written to the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) regarding Article 210 and we note that the KRA has moved to ensure that no State officer is excluded from paying tax by reason of their office," he said. The Kenya Revenue Authority has already written to the Clerk of the National Assembly communicating its intention to tax MPs salaries and allowances. According to the communiqué, MPs unpaid taxes will be back-dated to August 27. However, the move has received mixed reactions from MPs, with some vowing to resist any attempt by KRA to tax their salaries and allowances in the remaining one year before the next general elections. Gwasi MP John Mbadi said the move would violate human rights of MPs because they have a five year contract He said it would inconvenience the lawmakers because their money is committed to mortgage and activities in their constituencies. "I am not against paying taxes. What I am saying is that you are going to inconvenience me, because when I came here I had planned my life around the money but now you are telling me that I am going to earn Sh195,000 less," he said. He argued Parliament would have been dissolved immediately after the Promulgation of the Constitution to allow for the next Parliament to implement the Constitution. "In the private sector, if they wanted to slash you salary, you were given an option to resign," he added. Water and Irrigation Assistant Minister and Embakasi MP Ferdinand Waititu however welcomed the call on taxation: "I am very much for it.  Those who are complaining are those who rely solely on Parliament's salary, but I had an income even before I came here." The CIC chairman further urged MPs to embrace the Constitution in its entirety so as to fully achieve its gains. He noted that there were some Kenyans who held wrong mindsets towards the Constitution saying such perceptions ought to be corrected. "Many leaders seem to be living in denial as regards this Constitution but even more alarming than denial is the possibility that the main cause of this resistance is impunity," he argued.  The implementation commission also urged President Mwai Kibaki to reject any proposed nominations to public office that did not meet the one-third gender balance threshold. Mr Nyachae expressed concern that there was an unwillingness to respect the gender equity provision as spelt out in the Constitution. He also urged the various bodies charged with implementing the Constitution to factor in the representation provisions on marginalised communities. "There is an apparent reluctance regarding gender equity in appointments to public offices. This trend is unacceptable and poses a very real danger to the gains brought about by the Constitution," he said. The Federation of Women Lawyers and with other civil societies have already challenged the Supreme Court nominees saying the proposed list does not meet the one-third quota. However women have been criticised for not taking up positions that are created for them by the Constitution. Last month the process of establishing a nine-member board to vet judges and magistrates was annulled and had to be restarted after women failed to submit their applications.  Only nine Kenyans applied for the positions against the required 21 applicants' threshold; none of these applicants was a woman. The law requires that out of the 21 applicants, at least six must be women. Various civil societies that focus on women however argued that the advertisements placed for these positions were insufficient as they were only done through the Kenya Gazette. The Interim Independent Electoral Commission (IIEC) has also expressed its concern with the gender provision and has even invited experts to help work out how it will be facilitated during next year's elections.  "We have to meet the one third women representation provision in the National and county assemblies because if we don't then those bodies will be unconstitutional and will be unable to transact business," said the IIEC Chairperson, Hassan Issack last Wednesday. Follow the author at https://twitter.com/wambuindonga

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