Gatanga MP Edward Muriu has announced plans to amend the contentious Finance Act as he seeks to shield farmers from over-taxation.
The MP said he will move a motion in Parliament to have Section 23 of the Act amended to introduce a threshold on who should produce an e-Tims invoice after selling their farm produce.
The government, as it seeks to cast its revenue basket wider, has introduced a withholding agricultural produce tax at a rate of five per cent of the value of the produce delivered to the market. This means that for every Sh100 a farmer earns from sale of their produce, Sh5 belongs to the government.
The decision has already received a huge backlash from farmers. Last month, some Kenya Revenue Authority officials were chased by farmers from a sensitisation meeting on eTims that they had convened in Kandara, Murang’a county to educate avocado farmers on how to pay for their produce sales through the eTims system.
Speaking while officially opening the two-day Mkulima Expo 2024 at the Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organisation on Thursday, Muriu said the lawmakers erred while passing the law, adding that they will be righting the wrongs made.
“Two wrongs do not make a right. Laws are made by men and if they are not serving the interests of our people, we need to relook them. There must be a threshold, not everyone should be paying the taxes,” he said.
The MP said farmers selling produce worth less than Sh2 million should be protected from direct taxation and should not be subjected to taxation and the law.
“The law is not cast in stone. It should only apply to large scale farmers and traders. We will amend the law to protect our primary farmers whom we promised to put money in their pockets when we were seeking to lead them,” Muriu said.
The MP said the legislators must amend the law before passing the supplementary budget set to be tabled soon.
However, his sentiments were criticised by some farmers attending the expo led by Beatrice Mwangi, who said the leaders knew the contents of the Act before passing it.
Mwangi said the MPs are taking farmers for a ride with the 'empty' promises of addressing their plight, adding that they should not have passed the law in the first place.
"They made it a law to tax us for our produce. During campaigns they promised money in our pockets but it's the other way round, they are taking every coin from our pockets," she said.
Farmer James Karuga said farmers in the country are working hard to assist the government realise its agenda on food security, but in return they are being slapped with heavy taxes.
"We are ready to till our farms and produce enough food for the nation. The government must be considerate and scrap the punitive taxes," he said.
At the same time, Muriu hailed the innovations and farming technologies introduced by Kalro saying they are significant in eradicating poverty, improving the country's food security and ensuring farmers across the country get good earnings from their farming.
“We are grateful for the varieties of seeds that have been introduced by Kalro to our farmers. For a long time, our farmers have been duped by unscrupulous dealers and traders who have been selling them counterfeit seeds. We are on the right track towards realising food security in the country,” the MP said.
Kalro Board chairman Peter Weru said the organisation has developed technologies including planting materials that are drought resistant and adaptive and that can withstand pests and diseases.
He said they have introduced two new maize varieties including Ukamez-1 and Embu-537 that are drought resistant and high yielding.
“We have continued to develop varieties that are drought responsive and high yielding. We can proudly say that agriculture has supported our country’s economy. We are calling on our farmers to ensure they plant high quality and verified seeds for maximum production,” Weru said.
The chairman also called for support from the government and the private sector to promote research and dissemination of the technologies to benefit farmers in the grassroots.
