Kawira Mwangaza: Call me Mrs Zakayo
By Winnie OnyandoMeru Governor Kawira Mwangaza has heaped praise on herself for expanding the tax base in the county.
Speaking during a tour of the region alongside President William Ruto, the county boss declared she had led away among her 46 colleagues in collecting the highest taxes.
“Mr President, Meru was ranked the number one county in collecting revenues. We are leading the whole country. I said if they call you Zakayu, they should call me madam Zakayo,” she explained.
Kawira further shared her commitment to fostering development in the region.
“When you do the right things, there’s a group of sad people. But that will not deter us, we are committed to improving the livelihoods of people through farming and the creation of job opportunities,” she said.
Kenyans have cheekily named President Ruto ‘Zakayo’ following his move to increase taxes and introduce others since he assumed office in 2022.
This has led to the high cost of living with basic commodities like electricity and fuel costing up to 50% more in some instances.
Ruto has, in his defence, explained he needs to collect the taxes so as to not only be able to repay the country’s debt, but also initiate development projects like the affordable housing.
In May 2023, Ruto embraced the ‘Zakayo’ nickname at an event where he went to file his tax returns at the Kenya Revenue Authority offices in Nairobi.
“Since I have already been referred to as Zakayo in some areas, maybe we will have a tax collector day. That’s a good proposal,” Ruto said.
In November 2023, a survey by Infotrak ranked the Meru governor number eight with 63 percent in terms of performance.
Trans Nzoia Governor George Natembeya and his Homa Bay counterpart Gladys Wanga were named the best-performing governors in the country.
The two emerged top in a list of top 25 governors, where they scored an average of 70 percent each
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