President Ruto Calls Out KRA Employees for Aiding Tax Evasion

President William Ruto has called out some Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) employees for obstructing the government’s efforts to collect taxes.

After filing his returns at the Times Tower, Ruto claimed that some staffers helped Kenyans evade taxes.

“Collusion, wanton bribe-taking and general corruption continue to pervade the operations of KRA. We would be collecting more money than we are collecting but we have staff at KRA who don’t work for the government but for themselves and other entities. They assist people to avoid paying tax,” said the President.

The President noted that the taxman has resisted the implementation and advancement of revenue administration technologies.

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“It has also been noted that KRA has not embraced the deployment of efficient technologies to improve revenue performance. The resistance to the introduction and upgrading of revenue administration technologies is an emphatic signal of the corporate culture of the organisation, which suggests that arbitrary, opaque and fundamentally corruptible revenue collection methods are the preferred modus operandi,” he added.

The head of state claimed that the taxman was underwhelming in comparison to its “peers” who collect more in taxes.

“We collect 15 per cent of our GDP, but our peers like South Africa collect 22 to 28 per cent of GDP. KRA should question why we only collect 15 per cent when South Africa gets 22 to 25 per cent. KRA has remained lackluster in its performance,” said Dr Ruto.

The President also committed to judicious service delivery using tax revenue.

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“My office shall be responsible for ensuring effectiveness, efficiency, transparency, and accountability in the use of public funds. I am not threatening KRA staff but they must do better,” he continued.

Although taxes are unavoidable, a government that seeks to mobilize tax revenues must inspire confidence that the tax administration will be fair, effective and efficient. This means that the revenue authority needs to be transparent, fair and accountable. It also means that the government is expected to be honest, and vigilant stewards of public resources.”