Two days after Parliament suspended the implementation of 16% Value Added Tax on fuel, Kenya Revenue Authority has gone ahead to implement the same.
The National Assembly had voted to suspend the tax to September 2020 in a move that parliamentarians said was aimed at cushioning the common mwananchi against the high cost of living.
For once, Kenyans praised their MPs for doing something useful touching on those who elected them but it now seems their joy was short-lived.
National Treasury Cabinet Secretary Henry Rotich dismissed Members of Parliaments’ decision saying that the tax would be implemented whatever the cost.
True to his word, the Kenya Revenue Authority has released a directive officially implementing the 26% fuel tax that will see Kenyans pay through the nose for virtually everything.
The new taxes now mean that Kenyans in Nairobi will pay more than 130 shillings for a liter of petrol with other areas paying much more than that.
Both diesel and kerosene are expected to increase by more than 15 shillings further hitting hard on the already “suffocated” Kenyan pockets.
According to financial experts, Kenyans should be prepared for the highest cost of living in history with prices of basic commodities expected to go up.