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| Githae maintained paying tax is a national obligation |
Nairobi metropolitan development Minister Njeru Githae has rubbished claims by Members of Parliament to strip the President the Vice president and the Prime Minister of their hefty retirement pay perks for allegedly betraying their course by paying their tax arrears to the Kenya Revenue Authority.
Githae has however faulted the taxman for demanding tax from Mps without engaging the national assembly to lay out modalities on how their allowances would be taxed.
During a weekend retreat last week in Mombasa, House Speaker Kenneth Marende and several legislators maintained the taxman ambushed them by demanding tax in arrears.
To add salt to an already festering wound, Mps felt betrayed by the two principals when they declared they had already complied with KRA's directive, and to hit back they are planning to strip the President, the vice president and prime minister of their retirement perks.
But metropolitan minister Njeru Githae has rubbished the claims saying the coast retreat was meant to discuss matters of East African integration.
Githae maintained paying tax is a national obligation but faulted the manner in which KRA is handling the matter.
"The KRA was not courteous enough when dealing with the tax issue. They should have engaged our employer which is the National Assembly," he added.
The Mps tax row has been exacerbated by contradicting interpretations of section 210 subsection 1 and subsection 3 of the constitution, with most legislators insisting they will only pay tax once legislation is enacted to include them in the tax bracket.
Former Makadara Mp Reuben Ndolo has urged Mps not to politicize the matter saying the law requires everyone to pay tax.
The Kenya Revenue Authority has demanded taxes from Mps and other constitutional office holders and with arrears dating back from August 27 last year when the new constitution was promulgated.
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