Nairobi ad hoc committee on tax system seeks second extension
The Nairobi County Assembly’s ad hoc committee on revenue collection has been granted a second extension to finalise its findings on the system used to collect revenue in the county.
The committee, chaired by Majority Leader Peter Jateso Imwatok, said it was in the process of finalising its report only to receive crucial feedback from some parties who were summoned but failed to appear.
While seeking the extension, Mr Imwatok said the committee had received an email report from the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) with a breakdown of its operations on the Nairobi Revenue System (NRS).
“Mr Speaker, I beg your indulgence to request for the last time to allow the tabling of this report on the second Tuesday of April 2024,” Mr Imwatok said.
The committee was due to present its final report to the House on March 19, following the first extension granted after the chairman asked for 45 days to complete the task.
Also read: CBC students to learn about KRA via e-tax resources
Mr Imwatok, who represents residents of Makongeni Ward, said from what they had gathered so far, the revenue system was complicated and no one knew who was operating it, resulting in millions of dollars being lost daily.
“We had found out that in the last two years, they had lost Sh2.9 billion in revenue collection. That is why they had emailed a huge document for our officials to download.”
Assembly Speaker Kennedy Ng’ondi granted the committee the extension, saying it was the last one.
The committee has been in place since November 2023 to gather information on the dwindling revenue in the county since the introduction of the NRS system.
The committee’s mandate expired on 3 January 2024, and it was expected to submit a comprehensive report on the poor revenue collection in the capital.
However, the failure of key witnesses to appear before the committee has hampered the ongoing investigation.
Former NMS director-general Lieutenant-General Mohamed Badi failed to appear, as did the head of the civil service, Felix Koskei, and the interior ministry.
In his recent address to the media, the chairman of the committee had said that the report was at an advanced stage and would be submitted with or without the testimony of those who failed to appear.
The ongoing inquiry has faced a number of challenges, including divisions from some members who felt that nothing special was expected.
Mr Imwatok alleged that the executive side of Governor Johnson Sakaja was trying to sabotage the proceedings of the committee by creating division among members.