Day: June 12, 2023

The National Assembly Finance and Planning Committee has finished scrutinizing the Finance Bill 2023, which will now be presented to the floor of the August House on Tuesday.

Speaking to the press in Naivasha, the Committee Chair, Mr. Francis Kuria Kimani, said during their five-day meeting, they had worked with various experts to tie up all loose ends and ensure all the clauses in the Bill are simple to understand and compliant with the law.

‘We have made some amendments to various clauses to make them clear and simple and ensure no clause is in conflict with the law,’ Kuria said.

He said they had tried as much as possible to accommodate the views of everyone who appeared before the committee last month to give their views on the Bill which has elicited sharp political differences in the country, majorly due to the proposed Housing Levy.

The Bill which has sparked a hot debate in the country, proposes to deduct three per cent of the basic salary from all employed Kenyans, among other issues. The Azmio – one Kenya Coalition has vowed to vote against the Bill, saying the tax proposals therein and the infamous Housing Levy Clause will hurt the already overburdened citizenry in these hard economic times.

Busia Senator Okiyah Omtata and several other people have already moved to court to oppose the Bill which they claim has some illegal and repressive clauses on the tax regime.

But in a sharp rejoinder, Kuria has appealed to the opposition to bring any amendments on the Bill to the floor of the House, saying the Bill had some positive clauses that will help spur economic growth.

‘I appeal to our colleagues not to politicize the bill as it will bring with it some very positive things to spur the economy of this country,’ he said, adding that Kenyans risk missing out on the many positive issues if the bill is not passed.

Kuria said the Bill, for instance, gives incentives to local manufacturers, which will go a long way in encouraging the growth of local industries.

‘We have to look for ways to sustain ourselves by raising our own revenue through taxation and stop overburdening Kenyans with foreign debt,’ he noted.

The proposed law seeks to expand the tax base and allow the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) to generate more revenue, especially from areas that have traditionally not effectively participated in contributing to the country’s tax basket.

Kuria, for instance, observes that unlike in the past, the Bill, does not propose any increased taxation on alcohol and cigarettes.

The Bill which contains 84 clauses, seeks to amend various tax laws and other related statutes to improve the operations of the financial sector as well as enhance measures for raising national revenue.

Source: Ghana News Agency

The National Assembly Speaker, Mr Moses Wetang’ula, has cautioned a section of the legislators against misleading members of the public on the proposed Finance Bill 2023.

Mr Wetang’ula told lawmakers that although it was right for them to debate the bill, even in their various political gatherings, they should do so with sobriety without distorting its contents.

The speaker made the remarks at Lwandeti DEB secondary school in Lugari constituency, where he led a host of Western region elected leaders, including Kakamega Governor Fernandes Barasa, in fundraising over Sh14 million for the completion of a multipurpose hall at the school.

Mr Wetang’ula was seemingly reacting to a section of Western leaders who have been openly opposing the bill that is yet to be tabled in the National Assembly.

He said that every other year, the Kenyan budget cycle is comprised of two bills: the Finance Bill (for ways and means) and the Appropriation Bill (for expenditure), which must be brought to the assembly.

‘These parliamentarians know that when such a bill comes to parliament, each clause, including the title, is voted for individually. Your legislators are in committees. There is no reason for you to lament in public, yet you are the ones supposed to be removing the clauses you don’t like’, he said.

‘It is your role as a Member of Parliament to go through the bill, and where you are not satisfied, you talk to your colleagues to rectify it,’ added Mr Wetang’ula, while reminding members of the public that the content of the bill lies directly with their national assembly representatives.

On her part, Health Cabinet Secretary Ms Susan Nakhumicha defended the bill, saying it will play a critical role in reducing the high cost of health care in the country.

She said besides having a clause that reduces the monthly NHIF subscription from Sh500 to Sh300, there is also another one that reduces the buying price of products required for the manufacture of drugs and vaccines.

However, Members of Parliament present, including Nabii Nabwera (Lugari), Jack Wamboka (Bumula), and Senator Godfrey Osotsi (Vihiga), expressed their opposition to the bill, saying it required some amendments.

Source: Ghana News Agency

Port and logistical operations within the Lamu Port have received a major boost following the importation of three state-of-the art Mobile Harbor cranes to speed up operations.

The three cranes are among five Harbor Mobile Cranes (HMCs) worth over Sh3.7 billion that KPA has bought in a bid to improve operational and logistical support within the two ports and serve the country’s two corridors.

Speaking in Lamu’s Kililana Port following the final unloading of the three cranes, the KPA Manager in Charge of Conventional Cargo Engineering, Swaleh Karuwa, expressed optimism on the impact that the three cranes would have on improving the port’s capacity.

‘With each of these cranes having the capacity to handle 100 tonnes, it is fair to state that the time taken to unload containers will be shorter,’ he said.

Karuwa further added that the new cranes have been designed to handle greater capacity in comparison to the old model cranes, which will further aid in marketing the port as a suitable logistical hub destination.

‘The new cranes signal the desire not only by the KPA but also by the national government to ensure that the Lamu Port is utilized and aids in creating jobs and opportunities that will benefit the Northern Corridor,’ he added.

The sentiments were echoed by KPA cargo operations general manager Sudi Mwasinago, who stated that the new cranes will aid in complementing the three berth capacity that the Lamu Port boasts and further market it as a viable regional transshipment hub.

‘At the moment, Lamu Port is a very viable cargo and transshipment hub given the five crane capability and three berth capacity that we have here,’ Sudi said.

The Lamu Port Senior Maintenance Engineer, Joseph Nyachwaya, who also spoke to KNA, stated that the KPA further expects to increase more equipment in a bid to attract shipping vessels and investors.

Lamu Port has so far handled only 22 vessels since it began operations two years ago; however, the number of vessels is expected to increase following increased investment in the Lamu Port by way of new equipment and prudent marketing by KPA.

On his part, the manager in charge of Engineering Projects Felix Ong’wen, reiterated that the new cranes will add value to the port by increasing the hub’s capacity to handle cargo regardless of the size of the vessel and the number of TEUs.

Source: Ghana News Agency

Organizations using individuals’ personal data for their own benefits risk arrest and prosecution for breaching the Data Protection Act of 2019.

The Office of Data Protection Commission (ODPC), Commissioner, Ms. Immaculate Kassait, warned those breaching the Act by using individuals’ data without their consent that they risked a Sh5 million fine or six months imprisonment, or both.

Ms. Kassait made the remarks in a speech read on her behalf by Ms. Rose Mosero, Deputy Data Commissioner-In-Charge of Enforcement and Compliance, during a sensitization forum on the Data Privacy and Protection Act 2019 in Kirinyaga County.

Kassait said people should give consent before their personal data is used by organizations, individuals, or any group in Kenya or outside the country, adding that those handling personal data must be registered with the Commission.

She appealed to county commissioners and other law enforcement officers to assist her office in identifying individuals or organizations breaching the Act so the office could take action.

‘The categories allowed to manage personal information should be registered with ODPC; they are data controllers and data processors,’ she said.

She said that since the Commission was established in November 2020, they have received more than 2,800 claims from people who feel their data was wrongfully handled.

Kirinyaga County Commissioner, Mr. Tobiko Nayioma, further warned the public to be aware of what they post on social media platforms because, in social media, information is treated as if subjects have consented.

He said some social media information was sensitive but the public was not taking it seriously since even international organizations may use it for bad intentions.

Members of the public lamented that betting companies and financial apps were abusing their Data Protection Act rights since they received messages from these organizations even when they did not sign any documents with them.

At the same time, the public were advised to report any organization misusing their information, even religious ones, since the government will not act where there is no complainant.

Religious leaders said that they should be given an exemption on the registration fee since some of their groups were too small to raise the Sh. 4,000 annual fee.

Currently, the officers from the Data Commission are conducting sensitization forums in different parts of the country.

Source: Ghana News Agency

Some 176 fishermen based in Kiunga, Lamu County will benefit from a Fishing Gear Exchange programme aimed at ensuring fishing crews adopt the use of eco-friendly nets that embrace sustainable fishing practices.

The exchange programme is a collaboration between the Lamu County Government, The Northern Rangeland Trust (NRT) and The Nature Conservancy (TNC).

Speaking in Kiunga Ward, Sunday, while launching the project, Governor Issa Timamy said the initiative aims at ensuring that fishermen in the Kiunga Marine National Reserve (KMNR) voluntarily exchange destructive, beach seine nets for more sustainable fishing gear.

Consequently, Timamy commended 11 fishermen crew out of 15 in Kiunga for surrendering their former fishing gears that posed devastating effects on marine wildlife, due to overfishing, stating that this move would lead to less wastage of fish produce.

According to Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) estimates, fishermen throw away about 60 per cent of their catch are fingerlings that have not fully grown into fish, once they have been caught by the beach seine nets.

Beach seines consist of long nets made of nylon fibre of varying mesh sizes and lengths ranging from 200 to 300 metres and have floats along the top and weights at the bottom.

They are usually placed in shallow waters and dragged by the crew to herd fish into a smaller pocket (or cod-end) and have been popular among fishermen for catching everything they encounter, thus increasing the risk of overfishing due to catching high volumes of juvenile fish, while also causing damage to coral reefs and seagrass.

‘To facilitate the voluntary exchange of beach seines nets in the County, the Gear Exchange Program is supporting 176 beach seine fishers in the Kiunga Marine National Reserve, with more sustainable fishing gears,’ Timamy stated, adding that the programme is in line with the government’s Blue Economy agenda of promoting ethical fishing practices.

The Nature Conservancy Africa Fisheries Strategy Manager, George Maina, said that the organization is committed to working with fisher communities and other partners to implement complementary interventions that ensure fisheries are managed in a way that results in stable supplies of seafood, thriving coastal communities and ecosystem conservation.

Sentiments echoed by the Chairman of Kiunga Wildlife Conservancy Association, Ali Shali, who expressed his appreciation of the engagement and consultation process that has gone into the Gear Exchange Programme.

This therefore means, combination of local community cultural understanding, coupled with scientific expertise has helped in building trust and understanding among the fishers on the need to stop using beach seines.

The Northern Rangeland Trust Coast Region Director, Hassan Yusuf, said they were working at the grassroots level with local fisher communities, to ensure that the fishers voluntarily exit from using destructive beach seines.

He further underscored the need for joint efforts among all stakeholders to support the communities in stewarding sustainable fishing practices that will encourage healthy marine ecosystems and livelihood benefits.

On her part, Senior Research Scientist at Kenya Marine Fisheries Research Institute, Dr. Gladys Okemwa, stated that scientific monitoring will be conducted to ascertain the impact that the new gears have in terms of volumes of the catch, species and sizes of the fish that are caught by the new nets.

Source: Ghana News Agency

Residents of Nanyuki, Laikipia County have been sensitized on how to curb Sexual Gender Based Violence (SGBV) and strengthen gender mainstreaming through social-economic development.

Speaking at a Nanyuki hotel during the training that brought together stakeholders in the education sector, religious, youth and Community Based Organizations, Laikipia Gender Coordinator Ms Karen Kiogora said that most people in the region lacked knowledge about gender mainstreaming which led to an increase of SGBV.

‘We are here to do capacity building for every stakeholder on gender issues. This will enable them to handle SGBV at the grassroots level. We realised that there is an increase of gender violence,’ said Ms Karen.

Ms Kiogora encouraged people to be open-minded on how to handle different roles at family level without prejudice. ‘We want them to appreciate that gender is about roles. Roles change with time. If one is able to undertake roles that were earlier done by other gender, they should not see it as an issue,’ she encouraged.

Laikipia Mukogodo Girls Empowerment Program Director Josephine Ndirias lamented that culture, especially among the pastoralists’ communities, was a major setback in the fight against SGBV.

‘In gender mainstreaming, we are still in darkness and when we talk about gender most people associate the subject with women. Women don’t have a say possibly just because they are women,’ said Ms. Ndirias.

Ms. Ndirias said that some roles among the indigenous community were solely for men and others for women terming such a scenario a threat to gender mainstreaming.

However, she said that, with the advancement in education, the indigenous communities had started appreciating women unlike before where they were just there to be seen.

Leon Mwangi, a youth, said that they lacked knowledge which led to violation of their rights and the workshop was a good opportunity to learn on how to handle SGBV at the grassroots level.

Samuel Kariuki, Laikipia Rising Hope CBO chair, on his part, said that young parents needed to educate their families about SGBV at the initial stages in life.

Source: Ghana News Agency