North Imenti Member of Parliament (MP) Rahim Dawood has called on the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) to review and reduce taxes, citing the tough economic conditions facing Kenyans and businesses.
Speaking in Meru town during a KRA citizens’ engagement forum, Dawood said the high cost of living, compounded by multiple government levies, has made it increasingly difficult for ordinary citizens to meet tax obligations.
“I urge the KRA to consider reducing taxes in a bid to make them affordable to the common man. Kenyans are not refusing to pay. Things are tough owing to the hard economic times the country and globe are facing,” Dawood said, adding that government expenses continue to rise even as citizens struggle to keep up.
The legislator praised KRA for improving overall tax collection but challenged the authority to reciprocate public support by easing the burden on taxpayers. He suggested introducing flexible payment options to prevent businesses from collapsing under the weight of taxation. “Some people can literally not pay taxes because they don’t have the money. Please extend a hand for people to pay slowly. We do not want to kill businesses. Or who will pay taxes if you kill businesses?” he asked, pledging to raise the matter in Parliament.
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Dawood argued that lowering taxes would expand the tax base by bringing more people into compliance, ultimately boosting KRA’s collections. He further proposed that the agency rebrand itself from Kenya Revenue Authority to Kenya Revenue Services, saying the current name carries negative connotations of arrest and punishment.
KRA Chairman Nderitu Murithi, who also addressed the forum, revealed that seven million Kenyans are active taxpayers out of the 22 million registered with Personal Identification Numbers. He said the authority is working to make its systems more user‑friendly by creating multiple channels to ease compliance.
Murithi assured traders using the pay bill system that KRA will not access their personal data or M‑Pesa transactions.
“There is no cause for alarm. Kenyans should not be nervous because we shall never look at your data or personal M‑Pesa transactions. We are only looking at business transactions because they generate income. Business income is what is subject to taxation,” he explained.
By John Majau
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