Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi has reprimanded MPs who voted against the Finance Bill, 2023.
Mudavadi noted that in the Budget, over Sh600 billion has been set aside for education, the largest single allocation of resources by President William Ruto.
“A cohort of 30,000 teachers has been factored in the budget. This is to reduce the teacher-pupil ratio. This is a very significant development. Why did you vote against that?” he posed.
Speaking at a church service in Kajiado, Mudavadi added that Ruto’s housing plan is not a stand-alone project.
“When you provide shelter, within that budget, water must be made available to the residents. Sewerage must also be made available and so is the access network to that housing,” he explained.
The Prime Cabinet Secretary added that the President's proposal is therefore bigger than just housing.
Ruto has defended the Housing Fund proposal under the Finance Bill 2023 even as the proposal came under sharp criticism.
Ruto has maintained that with the proposal, he wants to increase the number of homeowners and transition more Kenyans from rent-paying to homeownership.
He says the programme aims to enable mama mboga to access and afford a mortgage.
MPs on Wednesday night passed President Ruto's proposed Finance Bill, 2023.
The Bill passed after a third reading by the National Assembly Finance and National Planning Committee chairman, Kuria Kimani.
It will now be sent to the president to assent, for the proposals to become law.
The Bill was passed even as the Opposition and the ruling party engaged in a heated debate, over some proposals it contains.
The Bill had 87 proposed amendments, some of which were approved on Tuesday, as the National Assembly debated them deep into the night.
Key among the proposals passed was the 16 per cent value-added tax on fuel, up from 8 per cent.
At least 184 MPs—largely from Kenya Kwanza—supported the bill save for Githunguri MP Gathoni Wamuchomba, whereas 88 MPs—largely from Azimio—opposed the amendment.
The contentious Housing levy, initially proposed to be at 3 per cent was also passed after it was amended to 1.5 per cent of gross pay. It had been converted into a tax.