Keroche Fires 400 Employees Amidst KRA Closure

Keroche Breweries Limited laid off 400 employees after Kenya Revenue Authority closed down its Naivasha Branch on May 25, 2022.

The company allegedly failed to honor the earlier agreed plan of paying 30 million shillings tax arrears owed to the KRA.

Keroche CEO Tabitha Karanja shared a post confirming the same on Monday morning, stating that it was a very painful move to make.

“I was thinking aloud on Sunday afternoon and pondering how I will relay the painful message to our employees on Monday that we will be laying them off as a result of KRA’s closure.

I was also at pains as I looked at all the beer in the tanks that we shall be forced to drain to waste and wondered why and how the relevant ministries remain so indifferent to the dire consequences of the current closure of the company’s factory,” stated Tabitha.

She went ahead to express that the company’s predicament is a national issue that should be addressed by the ministry of interior as well as the Labor ministry.

“Does the Ministry understand how long it takes to build an enterprise even half the size of Keroche Breweries? They should not and cannot sit put and watch existing Industries being brought to their knees by the very government agencies that are meant to facilitate growth. This will surely erode investors’ confidence in our country.

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This is a humble request that all the relevant authorities be requested to rise to the occasion to amicably resolve the current issue and further protect and create a conducive and enabling environment even for other industries that may be suffering in silence,” She added.

Tabitha is now asking for more time to be able to pay the 500 million shillings tax negotiated in December 2021 and due six months after.

She noted that the post-Covid effects and the on/off closures of the company’s factory by KRA have left the company a shadow of the pre-Covid establishment and attributed the issues facing the company to politics.

“I wish to dispel the narrative that has been created by KRA that Keroche Breweries Ltd is a non-compliant taxpayer who perpetually defaults on their tax obligations.

Keroche Breweries earned monthly revenues of between 400 million-500 million shillings pre-Covid-19. After the prolonged closure, the revenues dropped to below 50 million shillings”, added Tabitha.