Why we voted ‘Yes’ for Finance Bill – Kimani Ichung’wah

National Assembly Majority leader Kimani Ichung’wah has defended the decision of at least 204 Members of Parliament to vote ‘Yes’ for Finance Bill, 2024.

Speaking on Friday, Ichung’wah said the Bill is for the good of the country and it will help create jobs for the youth.

He affirmed that the Kenya Kwanza administration is focused on making responsible decisions and not popular ones like it has been with past administrations.

The Kikuyu MP insisted that all these decisions are deliberate and will encourage local manufacturing and employment creation for the youth.

“I want to say to our children in the Gen Z generation, whatever decisions we make we will make responsible decisions as leaders. Leaders in the past in our country have been afraid of making the right decisions and always made popular decisions for political expediency. We want to secure your future by making the right decisions.

“When we say we will not tax locally manufactured and locally assembled products it’s deliberate. We want to levy taxes, import duty, exercise duty on fully finished goods being imported from other countries so that we can secure your future, so that we can encourage our local manufacturers to manufacture from Kenya to create jobs and generate an income for you so that even tomorrow you become taxpayers and participate in the nation building of our country,” Ichung’wah said.

He added that the Finance Bill 2024, is a step towards making the future of Gen Zs who have been protesting all week better.

Ichung’wah noted that while it is their constitutional right to demonstrate, they have been greatly misled.

He said the taxes that led to the demos were removed and that parliament will, starting Tuesday, make amendments to the Finance Bill. 

“Those protesting will continue to do so because it is their Constitutional right but they are also being misled with propaganda. They have been told bread has tax, they don’t know the tax was removed, they have been told there is motor vehicle tax and they have cars but they don’t know it was removed.

“On Tuesday, we will be in parliament to make amendments to the Finance Bill to remove tax on bread, motor vehicle tax and tax on sanitary pads that are locally manufactured and diapers,” he added.

Ichung’wa was accompanied by about 30 Kenya Kwanza MPs in Gatundu North and Eldama Ravine Constituencies where they held fundraisers and defended their move to vote in favour of the Bill.

Prime Cabinet Secretary and CS for Foreign and Diaspora Affairs Musalia Mudavadi was also present.

On Thursday, some 204 MPs voted in favour of the Bill in the second reading, while 115 voted against it.

It now awaits the Committee of the whole house, where proposed amendments will be made before it is passed.