President William Ruto has today declined to sign the controversial Finance Bill 2024 after pressure from kenyans to reject the whole bill.
According to reports, after President Ruto declined to sign it, the Finance bill will be sent to Parliament before the Members of Parliament break for recess today despite the destruction that was witnessed yesterday.
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In addition, the President has proposed a raft of amendments to the Finance Bill 2024 which the MPs will have to consider before passing it without amending it having done that earlier.
Reports indicate that after the Members amend the bill considering all the President’s reservations and suggestions, the Speaker will then present the bill back to President Ruto for assent.
However, for the bill now to pass in Parliament, the amends must be supported by two thirds of the members before the speaker presents it to the President.
However, additional reports indicate that the Speaker will be forced to recall MPs who were set to go on recess beginning today until July 23. It’s not yet clear if the house has been cleared after yesterday’s destruction.
Some of the tax proposals which had earlier been introduced in the bill include 16 per cent VAT on bread, Excise duty on vegetable oil, VAT on transportation of sugar, 2.5 per cent Motor Vehicle Tax and Eco Levy on locally manufactured products.
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These and other proposals led to the public uproar that led to the Anti-Finance Bill Protests that suggested the rejection of the bill entirely in a bid to reject what they termed as impunitive tax proposals.