ANC party leader Musalia Mudavadi has slammed MPs for their move to raise the debt ceiling to Sh9 trillion.
He hit at the lawmakers for "overburdening Kenyans at a time the country is chocking from borrowing", saying Kenyans should be worried by the move.
Mudavadi, who was at one time the country’s Finance minister, said Parliament erred in increasing the country’s borrowing ceiling.
Speaking during a rally in Kibera’s Laini Saba on Sunday, Mudavadi said the move shows MPs are not in touch with real issues affecting mwananchi.
“Recently in Parliament, the MPs without consultation voted to increase the debt limit. The move is in bad taste since as we are already suffering from existing debts,” he said.
In a day of intense lobbying, MPs on Thursday gave President Uhuru Kenyatta leeway to borrow up to Sh9 trillion.
Kenya’s current public debt stood at approximately Sh5.9 trillion as of June. This is 42.8 per cent up from 2008.
In other words, the country owes more than half the value of its economic output (GDP).
The lawmakers adopted the Delegated Legislation regulations that were forwarded by Treasury CS Ukur Yattani that remove the percentage of Gross Domestic Product as the determinant for the debt cap.
The move means the Treasury would no longer factor its debt caps on 50 per cent of the GDP which is currently about Sh6 trillion.
But Mudavadi says allowing room for more debts in the country's current status spells doom for its economy.
Apart from Mudavadi, ACK head Jackson Ole Sapit has also warned against over-borrowing.
Speaking during a farewell ceremony for the retiring Southern Nyanza ACK Bishop James Ochiel in Homa Bay town on Sunday, Sapit said more taxation will make life unbearable for Kenyans.
“Excess taxation makes the environment for doing business unfavourable hence low economic growth. Kenyans will become poorer than they are today,” Sapit said.
Edited by R.Wamochie
