This Country is Collapsing, MP Warns as Government Delays Civil Servants Salaries
As the country heads to Easter and nears closer to mid-month, the Ruto-led administration faces yet another hurdle that challenges their promises when they took power. Civil servants are experiencing unprecedented salary delays with members of parliament heading to the Easter holidays without their salaries.
This has led to the minority leader in the national assembly expressing his concerns over the same.
In a statement dated 7th April Opiyo Wandayi, the minority leader in the national assembly says the country could be collapsing following the unexplainable delays in salaries for the members of parliament and other civil servants save for the police and the army
“The Azimio Coalition Party is deeply concerned at the worsening economic situation in the country that has seen the government unable to meet one of its most basic obligations, which is paying its workers. We fear that this country is collapsing while we sit pretty, hoping for miracles,” Wandayi’s press statement on Friday, April 7 reads in part.
Wandayi pointed out that the Kenya Kwanza administration had made moves when they took power to save the country money and increase revenue. Yet, the current situation does not have a tangible explanation.
“[Upon assuming office in September 2022], Kenya Kwanza immediately announced that the National Treasury, from the scrapped fuel subsidy alone, would save Sh9.49 billion. The regime then embarked on massive tax increases.
In came a 20 per cent tax on M-Pesa; internet transactions went up to 16 per centper cent, 15 percent capital gains tax on the transfer of property, VAT on e-books and videoconferencing, the list is endless,” the statement reads.
“The government had conceptualized that the measures were supposed to boost revenue collection to between Sh4 trillion and Sh5 trillion per year, and enable the government to finance its operations, [but that has not happened],” he added.
Wandayi has attributed the delays and lack of funds in government to corruption, and tribalism to name but a few.
“We believe a lot of our cash flow problems have got to do with the corruption, tribalism, nepotism, incompetence, and plain theft at critical revenue collection points, starting with the KRA, in addition to wrong spending priorities,” he added.
Wandayi is now raising questions on where the money collected has gone accusing KRA of having directed the revenue collected to their own pockets.
“Where the proceeds from taxes and savings from scrapped subsidies are going, we can’t tell. The easy conclusion is that the criminals at KRA are collecting and pocketing taxes as the incompetents at the National Treasury also skim off the revenue while failing to come up with sound policies for cash flow, “the Ugunja Legislator added.
Wandayi is now calling for the audit of KRA before the country collapses.
“This state of affairs calls for bold leadership. We are calling on Parliament to take leadership and conduct an inquiry on the financial and economic crisis building up in the country before we collapse like other African countries that have gone that route,” said Wandayi.
According to reports, the MPs say the lack of money in the national coffers is the reason for the delay in salary
The MPs said the National Treasury had cited a lack of enough funds in its coffers for the delay.
The legislator has also called out the Kenya Kwanza regime for what he termed as spending too much despite selling the austerity measure agenda to the people.
Wandayi said it is not enough to just let the government hide behind, the war in Ukraine, global economic meltdown and Covid 19 for the predicament falling on the Ruto-led administration.
