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Wednesday, March 29, 2023 – President William Ruto is not about to give in to Raila Odinga’s demands to reduce taxes that have seen the prices of basic commodities increase.
This is after he defended his move to increase tax rates on items, saying the increased taxes have helped stabilise the economy, which was at a critical state.
Speaking during an interview with DW News on Tuesday, President Ruto boasted of levelling an economy that “was on a slide into debt” and that has been achieved by raising the tax rates.
“There are no increases of any taxes we have proposed that are punitive. We are in charge of the economy. Everybody appreciates that we have stabilized the economy,” he said.
According to Ruto, the steady economy has allowed the nation to tap into international markets, opening doors for more investments.
“We couldn’t access the international financial markets when I took over, today we can access any international market because they have seen the kind of stability we have brought,” he stated.
Acknowledging that the high-soaring prices of commodities need to be scaled down, Ruto reiterated his commitment to providing affordable, basic goods in the forthcoming days.
He stated that Kenya has already received a batch of food products, which he says is a step towards achieving his goal.
“Yes, we have a crisis of commodity high prices, whether it is fertilizer, fuel and grain,” he said.
“We have registered 5 million farmers, we are providing fertilizers and seeds for them to grow, we are importing food from across the globe and some of the imports arrived last week to begin to tame the price of commodities.”
“We are investing long term on irrigation and that is part of the conversation I will be having with German officials on how we can work together to change our agriculture from being rainfed to being under irrigation,” he added.
This comes as the Opposition, led by Raila Odinga, has sustained demonstrations across the country, urging Ruto to reduce taxes and lower the cost of living, among other demands.
The Kenyan DAILY POST
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